Lisbon, Portugal – The Portugal camp just turned into a powder keg, and Cristiano Ronaldo, 40, lit the fuse. Hours after the Al-Nassr icon’s viral rant – “Is Messi better than me? I don’t agree! He’s a bit of a womanizer – he likes to play with the ball. Barcelona bribes referees to pamper him. La Liga arranges for him to win everything!” – teammate Rúben Neves, 28, couldn’t resist the shade. The Al-Hilal midfielder fired off a sarcastic Instagram Story: “Talk all you want, Cap. Some lift trophies, others… excuses. ” with a winking emoji over a Messi World Cup clip.
The response was immediate – and ice-cold. By 2 a.m. Lisbon time, Ronaldo smashed the unfollow button on Neves’ 12 million-follower account, erasing a decade of shared Euros glory and Nations League triumphs. But that’s just the appetizer. Sources close to CR7 tell Portugal Pulse he vented to inner-circle pals over a late-night Riyadh steak: “The door to the national team is closed – permanently. No more calls, no more squad spots. He’s done.”
The beef? Simmering since October’s World Cup qualifier, where Neves netted a 93rd-minute winner against Ireland – saving Portugal after Ronaldo’s rare penalty flub. Clips of Neves’ post-match grin went viral, with Ronaldo’s hug looking forced. “Rúben’s been whispering ‘old news’ in tunnels,” an FPF insider spilled. “CR7’s ego? Unbreakable. But this Messi jab was the breaking point – Neves saw it as desperate GOAT-grabbing.”
X erupted at dawn. #RonaldoNevesWar rocketed to 3.9 million posts, memes splicing Ronaldo’s “Siuuu” with locked doors and Neves’ cheeky wink. “Cap’s benching a starter? Ego trip!” howled neutrals. Portugal diehards split: “Neves disrespected the king – exile him!” vs. “Time for fresh blood. Ronaldo’s era ends here.” One viral edit? Ronaldo’s stare-down morphing into a slammed locker.
Coach Roberto Martínez, sweating bullets ahead of March friendlies, called an “urgent unity summit.” Neves deleted the Story amid backlash, posting a vague “Respect always. “ – too late. Ronaldo? Radio silent, but his latest IG? A solo gym selfie captioned “Winners focus. Losers whine.”
From 128 Portugal goals to national-team exile, Ronaldo’s drawing lines in the sand. One tweet nails the drama: “He conquered Europe. Can’t conquer his squad.” With Euro 2028 looming, is this the end of CR7’s Seleção saga? Or just another chapter in the GOAT’s grudge book? Portugal’s golden generation? Fractured. Buckle up – the beautiful game just got brutal.
