Lothar Matthäus is distressed by the situation surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo and the national team. If it were up to the TV pundit, the world-class star would have deserved a better send-off.
Lothar Matthäus does not believe Cristiano Ronaldo will return to the Portuguese national team. The world-class star is “probably out of favour with the team as a whole, not just with the manager”, said the TV pundit on RTL.
Ronaldo had left the national team without permission a few days ago; he did not give a specific reason in a brief statement.
“A great career – congratulations to him,” said Matthäus: “He’s done so much for football; one can only be grateful. His departure should have been more dignified.”
Matthäus: The Ronaldo saga is “even sadder”
It is not yet clear whether Ronaldo could return to the Portugal squad. After the second victory without the superstar, manager Jorge Jesus at least left the door open for a comeback: “I don’t know what will happen; as far as I’m concerned, everything is open. Before he’s called up, he needs to decide how he wants his life to go from here. If he plays and wants to be in the national team, he can come back whenever he likes – why not?”
Meanwhile, Matthäus also referred to veteran star Luka Modric, who had recently suffered a heavy defeat with Croatia against England (0–7). “Modric doesn’t deserve that. Ronaldo doesn’t deserve that. They’ve given us so many wonderful moments.” The thrashing was sad, “but of course the situation with Ronaldo is even sadder. I hope that, in the end, they’ll still be able to look each other in the eye.”
However, he no longer considers a return to the pitch for Ronaldo to be realistic: “I don’t expect him to play another international match for Portugal.”
