Ruben Dias responds to the hype surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo

30 September 2026, 21:18·45·Sport

Manchester City defender Ruben Dias has addressed the recent controversies and media hype surrounding Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo. As reported by Goal.com, with the atmosphere within the team and the experienced striker's behavior becoming a major talking point ahead of the Nations League matches, the center-back emphasized that this external criticism is being disproportionately exaggerated. This is reported by Goal.com .

Tensions arose in the Portugal camp following the recent 2-1 victory over Norway. The 41-year-old striker did not feature in the match, and his subsequent departure from the pitch without acknowledging the fans, along with missing two training sessions, sparked public criticism. Although the head coach explained the situation solely as a tactical decision, various speculations were put forward in the press.

Team atmosphere and Dias' statement

To clarify the situation, Cristiano Ronaldo, the head coach, and Portuguese Football Federation president Pedro Proença met on Tuesday evening to resolve the existing misunderstandings. Nevertheless, the external pressure has not subsided. Speaking to the media, Ruben Dias stated that the team's players view such situations from a completely different perspective.

According to Dias, the team's key players, including Bernardo Silva and Bruno Fernandes, understand well that this issue is not as significant as outsiders think. The defender stressed that the players focus solely on their tasks on the pitch and do not pay attention to the hype created by the mass media.

Natural emotions in professional sports

Continuing his remarks, Ruben Dias said that it is impossible to find any player who has performed at a high level for many years and has never encountered problems with coaches during their career. He noted that such emotional states are natural occurrences in any athlete's life and should not be treated as a tragedy.

The player also addressed the criticism regarding Ronaldo leaving without greeting the fans. According to him, a 10-15 second moment of frustration occurring under the influence of emotions after a game cannot change the player's loyalty to the national team over more than twenty years, and the team will soon continue to celebrate important victories together.