Portugal boss Fernando Santos says he has no regrets about not starting Cristiano Ronaldo in his side’s World Cup quarter-final defeat by Morocco.
The Euro 2016 winners crashed out of the tournament in a huge shock on Saturday night, losing 1-0 after Youssef En-Nesyri’s first-half goal.
The win was a historic one for Morocco as they became the first African nation ever to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup.
Ronaldo, who was dropped for Portugal’s thumping last-16 win over Switzerland, was on the bench again for this defeat and did not come on until early in the second half.
Asked if he regretted not starting Ronaldo, Santos said: “No, I don’t think so, no regrets.
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“I think this was a team which played very well against Switzerland. Cristiano Ronaldo is a great player, he came in when we thought it was necessary, so no regrets.”
Ronaldo has been the talk of the town throughout this World Cup, firstly after he left Manchester United and then because he was dropped by Portugal. But Santos does not believe it disrupted his side.
“I don’t think what happened to Cristiano Ronaldo and the criticism he received had any impact on the match, we have always been a team that is very united,” he said.
