Ronaldo named in Portugal squad by Jesus despite admitting 'this is probably my last year'

Cristiano Ronaldo has been included in Portugal’s Nations League squad by new head coach Jorge Jesus, despite the 41-year-old hinting last month that his playing career is drawing to a close.

Speaking to Vogue, Ronaldo said: “This is probably my last year of football, and I want to leave a spectacular legacy.” His inclusion in Friday’s squad announcement — the first made by Jesus since taking charge — signals that the record international goalscorer remains central to Portugal’s plans, at least for now.

Jesus, 72, replaced Spaniard Roberto Martinez after Portugal’s 1-0 defeat to Spain in the World Cup round of 16. The new manager previously worked with Ronaldo at Saudi side Al-Nassr, where the pair won the league title together last season. He was measured but direct when addressing Ronaldo’s place in the squad.

“If he performs well, he plays. If he doesn’t perform well, he doesn’t play. That’s how I treat everyone,” Jesus said, before acknowledging the obvious caveat. “Now, does Cris have a different status? Yes. His career is different. He has five Ballon d’Or awards. But does that influence my decisions? No. It doesn’t influence anything, zero, but he is different from the others.”

Ronaldo, who will turn 43 before Euro 2028, is the highest-scoring player in men’s international football history with 146 goals. He is also closing in on 1,000 career goals across all competitions, currently standing on 979. Jesus, however, was sceptical that the milestone would be reached in a Portugal shirt.

“I think he’s more likely to score his thousandth goal for Al-Nassr than for the Portuguese national team,” the coach said.

Portugal open their Nations League campaign at home to Wales on 24 September, before visiting Norway three days later and travelling to Denmark on 1 October. They host Norway again on 4 October.

Portugal squad

Goalkeepers: Diogo Costa (Porto), Rui Silva (Sporting), Samuel Soares (Benfica)

Defenders: Gonçalo Inácio (Sporting), João Cancelo (Barcelona), Diogo Dalot (Manchester United), Nuno Tavares (Lazio), Nuno Mendes (PSG), Renato Veiga (Villarreal), Rúben Dias (Manchester City), Tomás Araújo (Benfica)

Midfielders: Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United), João Palhinha (Benfica), João Neves (PSG), Rúben Neves (Al Hilal), Vitinha (PSG), Bernardo Silva (Real Madrid)

Forwards: Cristiano Ronaldo (Al-Nassr), Fábio Silva (Borussia Dortmund), Francisco Trincão (Al Ahli), Francisco Conceição (Juventus), Gonçalo Ramos (AC Milan), João Félix (Al-Nassr), Pedro Neto (Chelsea), Rafael Leão (Galatasaray)