Ronaldo does not practice with the reserve group

In Portugal's training session at noon on December 7, all the substitutes in the match against Switzerland the previous night practiced outside, except for Ronaldo. Marca newspaper said the 37-year-old striker practiced in the gym with a group of 11 main kickers, to recover his fitness. Therefore, Portugal's training session on the field only had 12 players, in addition to Danilo and Nuno Mendes being treated for injuries.

Usually at the training session the day after the game, the teams often let the main kickers rest or maintain their fitness in the gym. The parachute reserve group entering the field of play in the second half will practice normally outside. Ronaldo has no injuries or physical problems, but still does not practice with the reserve group. Marca said the group of Portuguese players were surprised when Ronaldo was absent from this training session.

Portugal is preparing for the quarter-final against Morocco on the evening of December 10 at Al Thumama Stadium. On the evening of December 6, Ronaldo had to be a substitute, but Portugal still beat Switzerland 6-1 with a hat-trick of Goncalo Ramos in the first kick. Ramos was the main player to replace Ronaldo in this match, and the 37-year-old superstar was the first reserve in a major tournament after 14 years. Ronaldo entered the field in the 73rd minute but did not score.

At the end of the match, Ronaldo also congratulated each teammate when entering the quarterfinals of the World Cup 2022. After that, he alone went to the Portuguese audience to applaud and then went into the tunnel in front of his teammates. After a while, the other players came out to thank the audience together and went into the tunnel.

Ronaldo has yet to score in the knockout round of the World Cup, and the chances are narrower if he continues to lose the starting spot to Ramos in the match against Morocco. Coach Fernando Santos explained that he left Ronaldo on the bench not because of attitude, but because "Ronaldo and Ramos are different types of players".