Portugal national team coach Roberto Martinez could not categorically deny the possibility of Cristiano Ronaldo retiring from international football after the “Sailors” were eliminated from the Euro 2024 quarter-finals against France.
With Ronaldo reaching the age of 39 and his poor performance in Euro 2024 after failing to score even a single goal, criticism of him and calls for his international retirement increased.
When Martinez was asked after the Portugal-France match, he simply said, “It is very difficult to make any decisions at the present time.”
He also added, “We are now suffering from the effects of defeat, and there are no individual decisions in this situation.”
Reports before Euro 2024 indicated that Cristiano Ronaldo wanted to continue until the 2026 World Cup, after which he would retire from football completely.
The Saudi Al-Nasr star himself confirmed that his participation in the 2024 edition is his last in the Euro, but he did not answer definitively about his presence in the 2026 North American World Cup.