Having started the first-round match against Wales, Cristiano Ronaldo was not used by his coach Jorge Jesus in the second round against Norway, prompting him to slam the door.
CR7's absence did not prevent Seleção das Quinas from achieving a clean sweep during this September/October international break, allowing them to climb to fifth place in the FIFA world rankings.
“Foot Africa” spoke to Portuguese coach Francisco Chaló, who answered the following question: Is Portugal more attractive without Cristiano Ronaldo?
The Portuguese national team began the Nations League with a new coach, Jorge Jesus, who, in my opinion, is a highly experienced coach with great tactical ability and an excellent reading of the game.
In this respect alone, the way of playing and the game model used require very specific dynamics, starting with the active approach to defending. At this level, a high press is a genuine trademark — an approach I share and advocate — which notably means that the first defenders are the forwards.
Ronaldo's current physical condition does not allow him to provide these characteristics, which clearly require a very high level of energy.
Then, in the attacking process, the game model requires certain nuances in which mobility is fundamental to make the football more associative, with movements designed to attack the opposition's defensive line through runs in behind. In this model, there are always two players responsible for making these movements.
There is a defensive midfielder, three midfielders involved in the build-up and two forwards who, together with the very attacking full-backs pushing forward, help widen the attacking front.
Analyzing the Portuguese team in concrete terms, I would say that the collective is working extremely well, as shown by the last four matches. A defense positioned high up the pitch, positive aggression without the ball, variety in their play and excellent use of the recognized technical qualities of the Portuguese players are all elements that have become evident. The team is very compact.
Mentality-wise, we can also observe a sense of liberation among the players, allowing them to give more and improve their output.
However, at certain moments, Ronaldo can still be useful, provided that he himself understands that his use depends on the coach's reading of the match and that it may be necessary to have a player capable of occupying the center-backs.
But this will only be possible if Ronaldo understands that he is a member of the group and that he is not, on his own, the group.
Imed Ben Amara - bilingual sports writer and web editor with experience in football content creation. Since 2021, he has contributed to Foot Africa, providing news coverage and analysis.
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