Speaking ahead of Portugal's 2022 FIFA World Cup opener, Cristiano Ronaldo addressed the apparent "cold" handshake between him and Manchester United teammate Bruno Fernandes following his explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
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The 37-year-old has come under intense scrutiny since his remarks last week, when he admitted to having no respect for Dutch manager Erik ten Hag and slammed some of his younger teammates in England.
Amid suggestions that many of his club colleagues were upset by his comments to Morgan, a clip of Ronaldo and Fernandes meeting for the first time in the Portugal dressing room for the World Cup circulated online.
In the video, Fernandes appeared unenthusiastic upon seeing Ronaldo, who seemed to stare at the attacking midfielder as he turned to greet his other teammates.
Some believed the clip provided evidence of the potential tension caused by the Portugal captain's interview, despite national teammate Joao Mario later telling reporters that the viral video was being used out of context, and that the pair actually shared a joke at the time.
In a press conference on Monday, Ronaldo claimed that there was nothing to his apparent awkward greeting with Fernandes, before urging journalists to refrain from asking his compatriots questions about his actions from last week.
"We were playing around last week. His plane was late – I asked him 'did you come by boat?'," he said, according to Jeremy Wilson.
"Please, don't ask players about me – ask about the World Cup."
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Portugal open their World Cup campaign on Thursday with a game against Ghana in Group H.
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