Sporting president Frederico Varandas said Tuesday that Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to the Alvalade club was never a possibility and said he still did not understand the criteria for calling up the Portuguese soccer team.
Questioned in an interview with RTP3 about whether the return of the captain of the team to the club was “vetoed” by the coach, Rubén Amorim, the leader of the “lions” refused to “feed the noise and the soap opera” around him. ‘CR7’ and he was adamant in his response.
“Of course not! She not only didn’t veto it, but it wasn’t even an issue, she was never on the table. Until today, there has never been this conversation between Hugo Viana, Rubén Amorim and me. sells a lot, but there was nothing,” replied Frederico Varandas.
The ‘Leonese’ president, however, considered that the captain of the team is “one of the best players in the history of world football” and that “he will always be the banner of the Sporting formation”, but he refused to address the subject”. Out of respect for Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United and the national team”, where “he needs to be well”.
This team, which for the first time in its history will play a World Cup without any Sporting player on the squad, a criterion that Frederico Varandas attributes exclusively to the options of Fernando Santos and says he does not understand.
“For me it is important to respect a person’s decision, but a decision with which I cannot agree. I cannot agree because there are not two Sporting players in the national team,” Frederico Varandas assumed, before listing the number of parties. , goals, assists and other statistics of defender Gonçalo Inácio and striker Pedro Gonçalves.
For the rest, he declined to comment on the call-up of the Benfica defender, António Silva, barely 19 years old, for not having an interest in “talking about others”, but he compared the situation of João Mário in the national team, midfielder of the ‘incarnated ‘ Trained at Sporting and who loaned out to the rival in 2021, after a season at the ‘lions’ on loan from Inter Milan.
“There has been a criterion that I do not understand. In 2020, Sporting guarantees the loan of João Mário, who has not been in the national team for two years. Julio changes clubs, at the end of August they call him up,” he exemplified.
Even so, Varandas expressed his full support for the team led by Fernando Santos and his wish that Portugal triumph in Qatar.
“If as president of Sporting I like to see this? Nope! It has to do with the selection options, but I don’t like it, I don’t think it’s fair. win, of course yes”, concluded Frederico Varandas.
After a difficult start to the season, the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United was put ‘on the table’ again this week, after an interview in which the captain of the team wove harsh criticism of the club and its coach, Erik ten Hag .
Some media in England and Portugal have reported, this month and also at the beginning of the season, of the possibility of CR7 returning to Sporting, a hypothesis that the ‘lions’ coach, Rubén Amorim, has denied consecutively since the summer.
Cristiano Ronaldo is currently training with the Portuguese team, ahead of the World Cup in Qatar, which Portugal will play without any Sporting player on the squad for the first time in history.
Source: TSF
