Piers Morgan has criticised Portugal manager Jorge Jesus after the coach made a sarcastic remark about Cristiano Ronaldo’s absence following a 4-1 defeat by Denmark in Braga.
Jesus was asked at his post-match news conference whether he had missed Ronaldo, the Portugal captain and Al-Nassr forward, during the match. The 72-year-old responded: “Miss him? How? He is no longer with the national team, unless he is here to keep me company.”
The comment came after Portugal were comfortably beaten by Denmark, with Jesus’s side unable to match their opponents during the game.
Morgan responded after Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano shared Jesus’s remarks on his official X account. The post attracted widespread reaction before Morgan joined the discussion to object to the way the manager had spoken about Ronaldo.
“This clown won’t be with the national team either if Portugal continue to suffer defeats as they did today Saturday,” Morgan wrote.
His response linked Jesus’s future with Portugal to the team’s results, suggesting that continued defeats could put the manager’s position at risk. It also mirrored Jesus’s own reference to Ronaldo’s absence from the national team.
Continuing dispute over Ronaldo
Morgan’s comments extend his repeated criticism of Jesus in recent weeks, with the English broadcaster having taken a strong position in support of Ronaldo during the dispute surrounding the forward’s omission from Portugal’s squad.
He has previously criticised Jesus’s conduct and views in relation to the veteran forward, amid the controversy over the circumstances that led to Ronaldo being left out of the national team.
The disagreement resurfaced after the Denmark match, even though Ronaldo did not play. Jesus’s answer brought the Portugal captain back into the discussion, while Morgan’s reaction added another public exchange between the two men.
As a result, the manager’s response and Morgan’s subsequent criticism became a prominent part of the reaction to Portugal’s defeat. What began as a question about Ronaldo’s absence turned into a direct public attack on Jesus.
