In the past, Cristiano Ronaldo has spoken about his son. “We’ll see if he’ll be a great player. He’s not yet. Sometimes he drinks coke, he eats fries and he knows I get mad. I tell him to treadmill and then dive into cold water to recover, and he says: “Dad, but it’s so cold.” It’s normal because he’s young. He has potential. He is fast, he dribbles well, but that’s not enough. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication. I’m not going to pressure him to be a player. However, I especially want him to be the best, whether he’s a footballer or a doctor.”

The 16-year-old’s call-up comes at a time when his legendary father found himself at crossroads with the Portugal national side after a brief fallout with coach Jorge Jesus. Ronaldo’s walk out from the Portugal team camp during the Nations League fixtures was sparked by Jesus not playing him in the game against Norway on September 27 after he played in the opening win over Wales. After walking out, Ronaldo had unleashed an extraordinary tirade against coach Jesus, accusing him of breaking an agreement to play him. Despite Ronaldo’s absence, Portugal beat Denmark and Norway again to qualify for the quarter-finals of the UEFA Nations Cup.

Ronaldo is expected to be available for Portugal’s next Nations League match on November 14 against Denmark. That is if Portugal coach Jorge Jesus decides to give him a run out on the pitch, even as a substitute.