Why I Did It—Fernando Santos

The real reason Cristiano Ronaldo was benched during Tuesday’s 6-1 rout of Switzerland in the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 has been revealed by Portugal manager Fernando Santos.

According to him, the 37-year-old captain of Portugal was not benched due to his attitude, as was widely reported, but rather because of his tactical approach to the game.

It was claimed that the manager benched Ronaldo after the former Manchester United star pouted after being replaced in their last group game against South Korea.

Goncalo Ramos, a 21-year-old, was selected by Santos over players like Rafael Leao and Andre Silva.

Ramos was making his first ever start for his nation, but the gamble paid off as the Benfica star scored an incredible hat trick.

Fernando Santos insisted that he has no issue with Ronaldo and that it is merely his responsibility as a manager to make certain decisions that would best position his squad to win games.

When questioned about why he decided to sideline his star player, Fernando Santos responded that Ramos, the game’s MVP, is a different player than his captain and friend Ronaldo, stating:

“There is no problem with the captain of the national team. It was strategic. Players are different. I also started [Diogo] Dalot, Raphael [Guerreiro], however, [Joao] Cancelo is a fabulous player.

“That’s what I thought for the game against Switzerland, in another game it might be different.

“[I and Ronaldo] have been friends for many years and things don’t affect us.”