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Carlos Queiroz   Cristiano Ronaldo   2018 FIFA World Cup Russia  

Carlos Queiroz - Ronaldo

ESPN - Iran coach Carlos Queiroz has said there is more to Portugal than Cristiano Ronaldo after the Real Madrid decided not to speak to him after the teams' World Cup game on Monday.

Ronaldo had a penalty saved as Portugal were held to a 1-1 draw but advanced to the round of 16 behind Spain in Group B.

Former Portugal coach Queiroz told Publico he was pleased that three players -- Adrien Silva, Bruno Alves and Beto -- had said hello to him after the game but added that he was surprised by the behaviour of others.

"[It is odd] not to greet a coach who has been of service to the Portuguese national teams for 12 years," he said. "I achieved European and world titles, made reforms and brought ideas.

"The history of the Portuguese Football Federation didn't begin in the island of Madeira with Cristiano Ronaldo. It started long before. The values that I received from [former Portuguese players] Jose Augusto, Simoes, Eusebio, [Jose Augusto] Torres, Jaime Graca, Humberto Coelho and Toni weren't these."

Queiroz coached Ronaldo for four seasons during his time as assistant to Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, and managed him with Portugal from 2008 until 2010.

He named Ronaldo as captain once he was appointed, but their relationship soured at the 2010 World Cup when the forward blamed him for the round-of-16 loss to Spain.

On Monday, Queiroz criticised the decision to not show a red card to Ronaldo after a consultation with the video assistant referee over an incident in which the Real Madrid forward appeared to elbow Iran's Morteza Pouraliganji.

Portugal's Ricardo Quaresma said after the game he would not respond to Queiroz's complaint but added that he was "irritated" by the coach.

"Quaresma still has to play for [Portugal] and I'm not going to comment much on him," Queiroz said. "But if all the coaches he's had spoke about him, they would do so for a few years -- all of them, from Sporting Lisbon to Porto. It's better to keep it as it is.

"If he had to tell me something, he should have the courage and say it now. He said I didn't respect the Portuguese players. ... I didn't respect them?

"In the pregame press conference, I said that Portugal were not only a candidate, but they are favourites to win the World Cup. I praised Portugal's team."

Quaresma, who scored Portugal's goal against Iran, responded on Facebook, posting a photograph of a comic strip that showed a person saying "Queiroz says..." while Batman slaps him and replies: "Enough, what interests us now is Uruguay."

"I'm used to suffering from prejudice throughout my life," Quaresma wrote. "Maybe that made me stronger. Maybe that made me a better human being. My answer to this prejudice has always been to work harder, to fight more, to get where I've always dreamed of going.

"I know where I came from, what I've been through to arrive here and where I want to go, and I don't want to go alone. I want to go with the whole team, be one together."