Wayne Rooney believes Cristiano Ronaldo's explosive statement regarding his exit from the Portugal camp went "beyond anything" he has seen in football and was "so wrong".

During the recent international break, Ronaldo made headlines by storming out of Portugal's camp after Jorge Jesus left him on the bench throughout a 2-1 Nations League win in Norway.

Ronaldo subsequently released a statement in which he accused Jesus – who was his head coach at Al-Nassr last season – of a "breach of trust".

The five-time Ballon d'Or winner revealed his decision to leave Portugal's camp came after Jesus refused to read a series of pre-agreed statements at a press conference, which amounted to an apology to Ronaldo, compared him to Pele and Diego Maradona, and praised his interactions with fans. 

While Ronaldo insists he remains available for selection by his country, the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) has suspended the forward pending an investigation.

And Rooney, who made 140 Premier League appearances alongside Ronaldo for Manchester United between 2004 and 2009, felt he was out of line.

"My thoughts on Ronaldo are just: 'Why?' It was the same day [Lionel] Messi was retiring from Argentina and for him to come out of the Portugal squad in that way, then put that statement out… It's just wrong in every sense," Rooney said on The United Stand.

"To undermine your manager and undermine your team-mates the way he has – it was just so wrong. To undermine the Portuguese FA, everything about it was just wrong.

"From a football point of view, from being a team-mate of his and a manager, it wasn't nice to see.

"It comes down to every player. You have to stop playing international football eventually and, unfortunately, he's not dealing with it well. It's uncomfortable to see.

"You can't tell a manager what he's got to say. That just goes beyond anything I've ever seen."

 

 

 

 

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Ronaldo and Jesus had seemingly enjoyed a strong relationship prior to the row, with the 72-year-old leading Al-Nassr to the Saudi Pro League title last season.

Ronaldo scored 29 goals in 33 appearances under Jesus at club level in 2025-26, averaging one every 99 minutes.

But in his only Portugal outing under Jesus, in a 1-0 win over Wales on September 24, Ronaldo had seven shots with an expected goals (xG) total of 1.03 without scoring – his most attempts without netting in any game since a World Cup qualifier against the Republic of Ireland in October 2025 (also seven).

Since the start of 2025, Portugal have won five of their six games (D1, 83.3% win rate) when Ronaldo has not appeared, compared to 10 of 17 with him (D4 L3, 59% win rate).