Jorge Jesus on calling up Cristiano Ronaldo to the Portugal national team at 41

🎙️ Reporter: “Jorge, Cristiano Ronaldo is 41 now. Why continue calling him up when Portugal has younger options?”

🗣️ Jorge Jesus: “Because for me, Cristiano Ronaldo is an eternal legend. He is not replaceable, and his position cannot simply be changed because another player is younger.

He is the captain. He is the leader. And until Cristiano tells me, ‘Jorge, I am done,’ I will not decide that he is done.

If I don’t call Cristiano, who plays his position?”

🎙️ Reporter: “Gonçalo Ramos?”

🗣️ Jorge Jesus: “Gonçalo Ramos? Of course he can play there. He is a very good player. But he still has a lot to learn.

And if Gonçalo is intelligent, he will understand that.

He should be humble enough to stay around Cristiano, learn from him and understand what it takes to play for Portugal for so many years.

Cristiano himself knows what that means.

When he was young, he had Luís Figo ahead of him. Figo was the star, the captain, the player everyone looked to. Cristiano didn’t say, ‘I am Cristiano, I must replace him immediately.’

He watched. He learned. He waited for his moment.

Then when the moment came, he became Cristiano Ronaldo.

So why would we deny Gonçalo the opportunity to learn from him?

At 41, Cristiano may not be the same player physically as he was at 25. Nobody is. But football is not only about your legs.

It is experience. It is positioning. It is understanding moments. It is knowing when to speak, when to make the run and how to handle pressure.

And Cristiano has more of that than almost anyone.

If Gonçalo wants to become the next great striker for Portugal, there is no better classroom than Cristiano Ronaldo.

One day Cristiano will say, ‘This is my last game.’

When that day comes, we will respect it.

But until he says it himself, I will keep the door open.”