Portugal coach Fernando Santos is reportedly set to leave Cristiano Ronaldo out of his squad for the rest of 2018 after a decision was made by key officials.
According to O Jogo, the 33-year-old will not be called up for the upcoming international breaks this month or in November, thus leaving him out in the dark until next year.
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It’s unclear as to why the reported decision has been reached, but as noted by the Daily Mail, the Portuguese superstar sat out the last international break to work on his fitness as he settled in at Juventus following on from his World Cup exploits.
Whether or not that decision has influenced this one is uncertain or perhaps as noted by BBC Sport, with rape allegations being made against him, the Portuguese FA and Santos have arguably decided that it’s not the right move until Ronaldo is able to clear his name.
There could be an innocent reason behind it all as it could relate to his fitness again or that Portugal simply believe that they know what they can get from him and want to try out different systems and personnel against Poland, Scotland and Italy.
Nevertheless, with the introduction of the UEFA Nations League, they surely want to pick up wins and having Ronaldo in the squad would help with that. Based on the above report, it doesn’t look like he will feature though.