3 days to go! Ronaldo misses training, World Cup warmup with stomach bug

Cristiano Ronaldo, center, scratches his head during a Portugal soccer team training in Oeiras, outside Lisbon, Monday, Nov. 14, 2022. Portugal will play Nigeria Thursday in a friendly match in Lisbon before departing to Qatar on Friday for the World Cup. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

Cristiano Ronaldo missed a training session with Portugal because of a stomach bug that will rule him out of a World Cup warmup match against Nigeria, the team said Wednesday.

Portugal is scheduled to play against Nigeria in Lisbon on Thursday before flying to Qatar, and coach Fernando Santos said Ronaldo will not feature in the game.

Ronaldo’s build-up to the World Cup has been fraught following the release of excerpts of a TV interview in which the soccer great said he feels “betrayed” by Manchester United and does not respect manager Erik ten Hag.

Portugal’s opening group game at the World Cup is against Ghana on Nov. 24. South Korea and Uruguay are also in the group.

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