Erdogan: Ronaldo was subjected to political ban in World Cup

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
26 Dec 2022 11:17

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says "Ronaldo is someone who supports the Palestinian cause."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on December 25 that Ronaldo had been given a "political ban" from the World Cup.

"They have wasted Ronaldo. Unfortunately, they have imposed a political ban on him. Sending a footballer like Ronaldo to the pitch with just 30 minutes remaining to the match ruined his psychology and took away his energy," Erdogan said in an event with young voters in eastern Erzurum province, at Ataturk University.

"Ronaldo is someone who supports the Palestinian cause," he added.

He earlier discussed the Final match as well, drawing comparisons between football stars Messi and Mbappe, “Mbappe threatens the future. He is 23 years old. But, Messi, who is 34, threw his weight around with his experience.”

Ronaldo considered on December 12 that "there's no point in reacting in the heat of the moment," as he responded to Portugal's 2022 World Cup elimination after a 1-0 loss to Morocco.

Ronaldo stayed in Qatar as many of the Portugal squad returned home and landed in Lisbon on Sunday afternoon.

"To win a World Cup for Portugal was the biggest and most ambitious dream of my career. Fortunately, I won many titles of international dimension, including for Portugal," Ronaldo wrote on Instagram.

"Let's hope that time will be a good counsellor and allow everyone to draw their own conclusions," he added.