Former England defender Rio Ferdinand has offered his perspective on how Portugal’s head coach Roberto Martínez should manage Cristiano Ronaldo’s role on the pitch.
“Martínez needs to be a strong leader. He must take charge of the personalities and the great players in the dressing room. If in a particular match Portugal’s best chance to win is to keep Ronaldo on the bench and bring him on around the 70th minute against an opponent, the coach must have the courage to do that and be honest with the player,” Ferdinand explained.
In the opening group stage match of the 2026 World Cup, Portugal drew 1-1 with DR Congo, a game in which Ronaldo played from kickoff to the final whistle. Portugal’s next fixture is against Uzbekistan on Tuesday, 23 June.
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