UEFA Nations League: Santos defends benching Ronaldo as Portugal pulls off draw vs Spain

Cristiano Ronaldo was benched and not started during Portugal's UEFA Nations League draw against Spain on Thursday. However, head coach Fernando Santos has defended his choice.

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It turned out to be a thrilling clash between Spain and Portugal in the 2022-23 UEFA Nations League Group A's Round 1 tie. On Thursday night, it was played at the Estadio Benito Villamarín in Sevilla, and both teams settled for a 1-1 draw. Meanwhile, Portugal's sensational numero uno striker Cristiano Ronaldo did not start and remained on the bench after the hour mark. While he was tipped to start the game, fans were taken aback as to the reason for him being benched. In the meantime, Portugal head coach Fernando Santos defended his decision to do the same. Also, he was delighted with his side's performance during the draw, as both teams pulled off an "interesting result."

As for the match, it all began in the 25th minute. Álvaro Morata opened the proceedings, scoring for the hosts, thanks to an assist from Pablo Sarabia, while it was 1-0 to Spain at the half-time. In the subsequent half, Ricardo Horta pulled off the equaliser following an assist from Joao Cancelo in the 82nd minute, as both teams settled for a deserving draw and grasped a point each.

Explaining his decision to bench Ronaldo, Santos told Sport TV after the game, "There is no management. Management will be done in every game. Here too. It seemed that this was the best solution for the start of the game. A different team [Portugal], in terms of work and positioning of field, with different things. It seemed to be a good solution, and I had Cristiano whenever I needed to get him on the field. I already knew that. It's a normal structure."

"Thank God. Despite being sad about the result, I'm delighted because a Portugal draw with Spain is just an interesting result. Of course, it's not a good result for us, but still good for us, for the working of this group, which leads people to believe that we can do more," concluded Santos to RTP3.