When Roberto Martínez was appointed manager of Portugal in January 2023, we went for a coffee in west London. Martínez was in town to check on some of his players, but it was a player overseas that inevitably dominated our chat. Cristiano Ronaldo. Was the legend of the game still worthy of a place in the Portuguese national team?
I was sceptical. Ronaldo was 37, had just signed for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia and looked to be in lucrative retirement from elite football. Martínez, a naturally diplomatic man, was very supportive of Ronaldo and enthused about the player’s dedication to training and commitment to driving standards within the team. Martínez ignored the “Ronaldo is finished” narrative.
That was 34 months ago. Since then Ronaldo has scored 25 times for Portugal, extending his world record to 143. This latest batch of goals in his astonishing career included strikes against teams ranked in the FIFA top 20 like Croatia, Switzerland, Denmark and also a well-taken volley against top-ranked Spain in this summer’s successful Nations League final.
Ronaldo also scored twice last month against Hungary in a World Cup qualifier. So it makes sense to be wary about writing the 40-year-old off, even if there is strong evidence currently that Portugal need finally to break from their Ronaldo dependency. Cutting the ties with a star who has represented Portugal on 226 occasions, who has long been a figurehead for the team, who will be a figurehead for the 2030 World Cup being staged mainly in Portugal and Spain, will not be a simple decision for Martnez.
It should be a football call but it's also about emotion, pride, politics and money. It’s the biggest decision of Martínez’s life. Ronaldo’s more than a player. He’s a national icon. He has huge support in the media and amongst the public. He’s a global icon.
Cristiano Ronaldo Banned for Some of the World Cup
Cristiano Ronaldo's pre-match comments did not age well.
— Sports Illustrated FC (@SI_FootballClub) November 13, 2025
He has been sent off for the first time in his international career. pic.twitter.com/dwg35X29p9
Yet it's an obvious moment to make such a decision because Ronaldo will miss some of the World Cup through suspension following his elbowing offence on the Republic of Ireland’s Dara O’Shea. Martínez argued that Ronaldo’s ban should be a minimum one game as he was being provoked verbally and physically. Martínez also pleaded for clemency because it was Ronaldo’s first red card in his lengthy international career. Yet an elbow is violent conduct and he could face a three-game under FIFA laws.
He's already sat out one game. With one man banned, Portugal showed they’re not a one-man band on Sunday. They thrashed Armenia, 9-1, and qualified for next summer’s spectacular. If taken to the World Cup, Ronaldo is sure to be banned for at least the first of Portugal’s three group stage games, possibly two. He’ll hope for only one more match out in the cold.
Wayne Rooney was fortunate to be banned for only two games for his violent conduct, a stamp on Portugal’s Ricardo Carvalho, now Martínez’s assistant, at the 2006 World Cup. That was followed by a wink from Ronaldo to the bench, suggesting that their trap for Rooney had worked. The pair were Manchester United teammates at the time, and there will be some smirking in England should Rooney’s nemesis receive a lengthy ban.
FIFA Will Want CR7 There
It would make the decision-making process simpler for Martínez. But that is highly unlikely. FIFA will want him there for a record sixth World Cup. He’s such a huge name, a magnet for mainstream and social media attention and he’s a marquee marketing dream. Just think of the numbers may be the call: CR7 has more than 1 billion followers on social media. FIFA has a 10th of that. Ronaldo’s a powerful asset for FIFA in spreading the message about football.
More than a fistful of dollars are riding on Ronaldo being in Canada, Mexico and the United States for FIFA. A cynic might suggest that could influence the global governing body’s thinking on length of ban. Perish the thought. FIFA always insists that sanctions are independently formulated.
Could the greatest show on earth be the same without arguably the greatest showman on football earth? Television will want the five-time Ballon d’Or winner there for a final episode of the long-running Ronaldo v. Messi drama series. He’s box office.
The box is his office nowadays. And this is the issue with Ronaldo. He lacks mobility to be a true threat in sustained action at elite level. Ronaldo looks after his body supremely but he’s entered his fifth decade on earth. Father Time is one opponent even the greatest cannot beat. Ronaldo can still work the box, and knows where to run but the best centre-halves will read his intentions. Even with acknowledgment of those recent goals, Ronaldo’s case for inclusion has ebbed.
A Huge Decision for Martínez
Yet even that process will be controversial. Jettisoning the country’s greatest footballing servant, a player even above the wonderful Eusebio, during a suspension will look heartless. The pressure on Martínez is immense. The easier call for the manager would be to keep Ronaldo on.
But it would be the wrong one. It won’t be a footballing decision, but it should be. Armenia was swept aside, as it should be. It’s 104th in the FIFA world rankings, just ahead of Kyrgyzstan and Madagascar. But the absence of Ronaldo appeared to free the team up psychologically. More of them delivered, perhaps because they didn’t want to be known as the CR7 team.
Who needs Cristiano Ronaldo?
— Sports Illustrated FC (@SI_FootballClub) November 16, 2025
Portugal are heading to the 2026 World Cup in style. pic.twitter.com/salHgXru48
Bruno Fernandes and João Neves scored hat-tricks. Gonçalo Ramos, Renato Veiga and Francisco Conceição contributed the rest. Ronaldo sympathisers can point out with some legitimacy that Portugal don’t have a top-level centre-forward. Gonçalo Ramos has 10 goals in 22 internationals, he’s only 24, but he’s maturing at Paris Saint-Germain, scoring important goals recently against Barcelona and Nice. But he’s not elite level. Maybe he will flourish when escaping Ronaldo’s long shadow.
Portugal have so much quality from Ruben Dias to Bernardo Silva, João Neves, Ruben Neves, Vitinha, Matheus Nunes, Bruno Fernandes and Rafael Leao. Portugal will survive without Ronaldo. But if they go without him, they will thank him for the inspiration over two decades and the March international break would be a great opportunity for a high-profile farewell in Lisbon. But has Martínez the will to cull a legend?
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Is Now the Time for Portugal to Part Ways With Cristiano Ronaldo? .
