Coach Jorge Jesus said he is not planning to start Cristiano Ronaldo in Portugal's game against Denmark in the Nations League on Thursday but says there is no feud between the pair.
The star striker Ronaldo did not practice on Wednesday, though, and reportedly left the stadium where the team was preparing for the match.
Jesus said in the pregame news conference that every player knows the coach makes the decisions, and that Ronaldo told him he would abide by whatever choices he makes.
The coach added the "rules are the same for everyone" and that Gonçalo Ramos would start up front against Denmark if everything went to plan.
"I don't know what's going to happen in the game," Jesus said. "If we need [Ronaldo] to play [at some point], he'll play. If not, he won't."
Ronaldo, the all-time leading scorer in men's international soccer with 146 goals and pursuing the milestone of 1,000 career goals, didn't play on Sunday in Portugal's 2-1 win over Norway. The 41-year-old has not trained with the rest of the group since, sparking widespread rumors about a possible feud with Jesus.
Jesus, who worked with Ronaldo for about a year in Saudi Arabia, said the player did not refuse to practice after having been left on the bench.
"It seems like there was an issue between us, but there was no issue," Jesus said. "I'm the one who makes the decisions and everybody knows that."
Jesus acknowledged he had told Ronaldo he would likely play against Norway, but changed his mind because of the circumstances of the match.
He said it was a mistake to send Ronaldo to warm up for as long as he did and then not use him. Jesus added "any player" would be upset about that.
But Jesus did not apologize for telling Ronaldo that he was likely to play.
"I can promise whatever I want, I'm the coach," Jesus said. "No player will ever make a decision for me."
Jesus said, though, that someone with the stature of Ronaldo deserved a different type of attention from coaches "because of his career and history in soccer."
Jesus, who took over the squad from Roberto MartÃÂnez after the World Cup, said he ended up being "obligated" to have a meeting with Ronaldo because of the noise created in Portugal over the situation.
But he maintained there was no "Ronaldo case" to talk about and there was nothing to solve between him and the player because nothing was wrong.
Jesus said it was normal that the federation president, Pedro Proença, also met with the pair.
"We had to talk the three of us, but I had already talked with Cris and the president didn't have to solve anything because there was nothing to solve," Jesus said.
Denmark coach Brian Riemer earlier said that Ronaldo remained an important player for Portugal.
"Well, he is a world-class player, and that is clear," Riemer said at his news conference.
"I think people tend to underestimate his importance to the Portuguese national team, and for me, he is a great icon and a player that, if you make a big mistake and underestimate him, then I think it is something we obviously need to be extremely aware of."
Ronaldo started Portugal's 1-0 win over Wales last Thursday but was substituted in the 67th minute. On Tuesday, he posted on Instagram a photo of him wearing the kit accompanied by the country's flag and a heart emoji.
Portugal lead Group A4 of the Nations League with six points from two matches, three points more than Denmark and Norway. Wales are last with no points.
Portugal also host Norway on Sunday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.