The Portuguese international João Mário considered that the controversial interview with Cristiano Ronaldo this weekend, in which he claimed to feel “betrayed” by Manchester United, “does not put more pressure” on the Portuguese team, which is already training for a friendly against Nigeria on Thursday, prior to the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
“It was not the times. The attention is always on him. It’s not news to us“, said Mário at a press conference on Tuesday, before the training of the “quinas” team at the City of Soccer in Oeiras, on the outskirts of Lisbon.
(Read: Byron Castillo’s reaction after running out of the World Cup: “I love it”)
“The headlines are always about him. I don’t see problems with the moment, because everyone is talking about Cristiano“added the Benfica player after the insistence of the journalists.
He also assured that Cristiano Ronaldo is “always happy” in the Portuguese team, “totally focused” on training and “will be a great help” for the World Cup.
(Also: Could Colombia fight for a place in the World Cup in Qatar because of the trouble in Ecuador?)
The controversy broke out this Sunday, after Cristiano Ronaldo, currently at Manchester United, accused the English club of having turned him into a “black sheep” who is blamed for everything that has gone wrong in the entity and for forcing him to to leave.
“Manchester United tried to force me out. Not only the manager, but also the rest of the people around the club. I felt betrayed,” Cristiano Ronaldo told English journalist Piers Morgan.
When asked about the Portuguese participation in the World Cup, João Mário assured that his team allows “dreaming and thinking that it is possible to win the World Cup”.
EFE
