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A senior executive at Barcelona has swung in the defence of Cristiano Ronaldo amid criticism of his involvement in the Portuguese national team.
Barcelona sporting director, Deco, defended Cristiano Ronaldo amid claims that the Al Nassr star should be axed from the Portuguese national team.
Deco and Ronaldo were teammates in the Selecao setup, and they played together in two European Championships and two World Cups.
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Hence, despite being a Barcelona director, the premier club of Ronaldo's main rival, Lionel Messi, the former Chelsea midfielder dubbed his ex-teammate as the GOAT.
What Deco said
Cristiano was called up to Portugal's squad for the Nations League this summer, which meant that the voices pushing for him to call his time at the national team resurfaced.
Deco was faced with this question in a recent interview, and he immediately dismissed it, saying it was disrespectful to the greatest player in their nation's history.
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"That question doesn't even need to be asked. That is disrespectful," he said, per Goal. "Cristiano is the greatest Portuguese player. He's the greatest player in the history of world football."
The criticism of Ronaldo's involvement is partly due to the sheer volume of elite talent Portugal have access to, with many of his detractors arguing that he takes up a slot from more deserving players.
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While Deco disagreed with the suggestion to drop Ronaldo, he acknowledged Portugal's talent pool, which has left him excited about the future.
"I think it's good, it's positive," he said. "Portugal has a fantastic, incredible national team for me. With new players appearing, there's a future ahead.”
Meanwhile, Portugal stand the chance to win their second Nations League trophy this summer after claiming glory in the maiden edition.
Selecao face Germany in the semi-final at the Allianz on June 4 and will face the winner of the second semi-final between France and Spain days later in the final of the Nations League.
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