Cristiano Ronaldo and Man Utd duo Fernandes and Dalot will not return to Lisbon and stay in Qatar despite World Cup exit
CRISTIANO RONALDO and ex-Manchester United team-mates Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot will NOT return to Lisbon and will stay in Qatar despite Portugal’s World Cup exit.
Portugal missed out on a semi-final date with world champions France after they fell to a historic 1-0 quarter-final defeat to Morocco.
Ronaldo was a second half substitute and was unable to save his country from disaster, like he has so many times before.
The Portuguese FA has announced Ronaldo and nine other team-mates, including United duo Fernandes and Dalot, will stay in Qatar.
Other names include Bernardo Silva, Ruben Neves, Rui Patricio, Raphael Guerreiro, Rafael Leao, Joao Cancelo and Maheus Nunes.
Only 14 players will be returning to the Portuguese capital of Lisbon following their World Cup disappointment.
The tournament was a complete disaster for 37-year-old Ronaldo.
On what could be his final World Cup, he managed just one goal, which came from the penalty spot against Ghana in the group stages.
He also found himself benched by Euro 2016-winning boss Fernando Santos for the knockout stages, and he may well end up without a World Cup knockout goal.
The disaster in the Middle East followed his explosive interview with SunSport columnist and TalkTV main man Piers Morgan.
BETTING SPECIAL – BEST BETTING APPS FOR THE WORLD CUP
Ronaldo slammed Man Utd, accusing his then employers of betrayal, while declaring he did not respect manager Erik ten Hag.
The interview pushed Ronaldo beyond the point of return and United ripped up his contract before Portugal’s first group game.
Where he plays his club football next is yet to be decided.
Ronaldo is said to have a lucrative offer on the table from Saudi side Al Nassr.