Roberto Martinez
Portugal’s new head coach, Roberto Martinez, has observed the need for Portuguese talisman, Cristiano Ronaldo, to be shown respect.
According to Martinez, “Cristiano Ronaldo deserves respect after 19 years as part of the national team; we’re going to speak about that soon.”
Martinez made the remarks in his first press conference following his appointment by the Portuguese Football Association.
It would be recalled that Ronaldo who recently joined Saudi Arabian Club Al Nassr in a £173-million-a-year-contract, was benched in both Portugal’s round of 16 match against Switzerland and quarterfinal clash against Morocco in the World Cup in Qatar.
Martinez takes over from Fernando Santos who stepped down from the role recently following Portugal’s 1 – 0 defeat to Morocco in the quarterfinal of the FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Martinez’s contract is expected to run until June 2026.
He is expected to manage the Portugal’s squad hopefully in the upcoming Euros and World Cup.
About Roberto Martinez
Martinez was born on July 13, 1973. He is a former professional player. He played as a defensive midfielder, beginning his footballing career with now La Liga 2 side, Real Zaragoza. Martinez won the Copa del Rey with Real Zaragoza .
He had a spell at CF Balaguer before moving onto English club, Wigan Athletic.
Martinez also played for Scottish club, Motherwell, Walsall, and later joined Swansea City in 2003.
Around 2014, he was appointed head coach of Everton. Everton finished in fifth place during the first season of Martinez. In May 2016, Martinez was however sacked as head coach of Everton.
Later on August 3, 2016, Martinez was appointed head coach of Belgium, guiding the nation to third place in 2018 FIFA World Cup, the country’s best-ever position in the history of the World Cup.
Following Belgium’s poor performance and group-stage exit from the 2022 World Cup, Martinez resigned as head coach of Belgium, paving way for his appointment as manager of Portugal.