FPF president redirects travel to Malmö amid coach-captain clash

The head of the Federação Portuguesa de Futebol altered his agenda, abandoning a planned visit to the Azores for the under-21 fixture against Gibraltar and traveling instead to Malmö, Sweden, where the senior national team is training for Thursday's Nations League clash with Denmark in Copenhagen. The move follows reports of friction between coach Jorge Jesus and captain Cristiano Ronaldo, stemming from a prior agreement that Ronaldo would feature in half of the home matches but was left on the bench in the recent Norway game.

Ronaldo did not take part in Tuesday's group session, arriving only shortly before training and later heading to the hotel gym because the pitch lacked necessary equipment. Proença said he felt it essential to be near the squad at this moment, while Jesus confirmed he speaks with Ronaldo daily. Both the coach and Ronaldo posted upbeat messages on social media about the team's preparation.