Bernardo Silva has insisted that Cristiano Ronaldo will not cause any problems in the Portugal camp after being dropped from the starting lineup against Switzerland on Tuesday.
Ronaldo started each of Portugal's three group-stage games at the 2022 World Cup against Ghana, Uruguay and South Korea, but he was named on the substitutes' bench for the last-16 clash with Switzerland.
The 37-year-old's replacement, Goncalo Ramos, scored a stunning hat-trick as Portugal cruised to a 6-1 victory at Lusail Stadium to set up a quarter-final encounter with Morocco.
Portugal boss Fernando Santos revealed in his pre-match press conference that he "didn't like" Ronaldo's reaction to being substituted in the 2-1 group-stage defeat against South Korea last Friday.
The former Manchester United forward, who is now a free agent, came on as a substitute in the 73rd minute against Switzerland, and it remains to be seen whether he will begin again on the bench when Portugal face Morocco.
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Ronaldo appeared to cut a frustrated figure at times while sat in the dugout, but Bernardo does not believe that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner will cause a rift within the first-team squad.
"I don't think so. I think he is helping us," the Manchester City playmaker told reporters, via Goal, after the win over Switzerland. "Today he showed a great personality inside the dressing room, and he was fine.
"Of course, sometimes he might not be happy because everyone wants to play. But he helped us a lot in his role and his attitude was great."
Ronaldo's former Red Devils teammate Bruno Fernandes has admitted that he would be "angry" if he were dropped for Portugal's next match, adding: "Do you think anyone likes to be on the bench? I don't think Cristiano would be happy. If the manager put me on the bench in the next game, I would be angry.
"We won the first two games with Cristiano in the first 11, and it could be that if Cristiano played, he could score three goals and no one would be speaking about Cristiano being on the bench.
"Cristiano is doing his job, he's doing his part, he's happy with the result because the goal for everyone is to go as far as possible.
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"I don't think people should be talking about Cristiano and why he's not playing, because when Cristiano plays and the team wins, no one talks about that.
"When Cristiano plays and the team loses, everyone talks. [He is] the most famous player in the world. No one is more famous than Cristiano in sports, not in football, in sports."
Santos, meanwhile, insists that Ronaldo remains "an important player" for Portugal and confirmed that the No.7 will "definitely" be involved against Morocco.
Ronaldo became the first player in World Cup history to score at five separate editions of the tournament when he converted from the penalty spot in Portugal's 3-2 group-stage victory over Ghana last month.
The legendary forward is Portugal's all-time leading scorer after netting 118 goals in 195 appearances across all competitions, including eight strikes in 21 World Cup games.
Oliver Thomas
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