Jesus declines further comment on Ronaldo's account

Portugal coach Jorge Jesus said Wednesday he had read Cristiano Ronaldo’s public account of their disagreement but would make no further comment, leaving unresolved whether the Portuguese Football Federation will discipline the forward for leaving the national team camp. Jesus made the brief remarks while heading to the Federation headquarters, saying he was focused on the national team. It was a change from an earlier response, when he said he had not yet read Ronaldo’s statement because he was watching Portugal’s Under-21 team. The remarks came amid questions about the dispute and Ronaldo’s departure from camp. Ronaldo said Jesus had indicated he would play about 30 minutes against Norway but did not bring him on, despite Ronaldo warming up. Ronaldo also said the two had agreed Jesus would explain the playing-time issue publicly, but that the coach later did not follow through. Those descriptions of their private discussions and the match arrangement are Ronaldo’s account; Jesus’s reported response did not address the allegations.