Portugal manager Fernando Santos was unequivocal about his decision of not starting his skipper Cristiano Ronaldo and only took him off the bench in the second half even after his team was edged out from the World Cup in a 1-0 defeat against Morocco in their quarter-final clash on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Ronaldo resorted to his usual sulk-and-strut routine storming off the pitch after the final whistle but th is time with tears while being comforted by his team mates.<\/p>\n
“I do not regret (leaving Ronaldo on the bench),” coach Santos told a news conference on Saturday.<\/p>\n
“It wouldn’t change anything, in terms of the team I can’t be thinking with my heart.<\/p>\n
“I used the team that played really well against Switzerland and there was no reason to change it (against Morocco).<\/p>\n
“The strategic decision that I had to make was one of the hardest, but I can’t think with my heart, I have to think with my head.<\/p>\n
“It’s not that Ronaldo is no longer a great player, that has nothing to do with it.”<\/p>\n
Prior to the Morocco clash, Portugal\u2019s all-time leading goal scorer with 118 goals in 195 appearances had been benched for Tuesday\u2019s 6-1 win over Switzerland in the last 16 where his 21-year-old replacement Goncalo Ramos scored a scorching hattrick in only his fourth appearance.<\/p>\n
Morocco\u2019s feisty Atlas Lions extended their dream run and roared magnificently into the history books by becoming the first-ever African and Arab country to reach the final four in a World Cup thanks to a sublime Youssef En-Nesyri goal in the first-half.<\/p>\n
Post-match, Santos declined to comment on whether he will resign as Portugal national coach and said that he will talk to the Portuguese FA president over the next week regarding his future.<\/p>\n
He admitted his team encountered difficulties finding spaces between the disciplined Moroccan defensive lines, and he did not withhold praise for their opponents for their highly laudable effort, saying it was “completely their merit.”<\/p>\n
“Sometimes in football what you need is a little bit of luck,” Santos said.<\/p>\n
“We showed effort and quality, had several chances to score with Joao Felix, and Bruno Fernandes hit the bar, Pepe had a header in the end that could have been the equalizer… A bit of luck was missing.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"