After leading Portugal's national team to a 4-2 away victory over Denmark in the third-place playoff of the UEFA Nations League, head coach Jorge Jesus attended a press conference. What follows is the first part of that press conference.

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I'm proud of the team's victory. Out of respect for my work and your coaching methods, I wanted to ask: what did you tell Cristiano Ronaldo before he left the national team? Would you welcome him back if he wanted to return to the national team in the future?

This was an important and exceptional victory. Today, Portugal's national team displayed impressive competitive strength on the pitch and managed to score four goals. In my view, the team played a high-level match. It's clear that this victory is more important than anything that has happened before. That's why I want to focus all my attention on this match itself and the next match we'll play at Estádio do Dragão (the home match against Norway). I believe that when we return to Portugal, our fans and supporters will fill Estádio do Dragão to capacity. Right now, that's what matters most to me.

Coach Jesus, you just said you've achieved your main objective—to win the match. After seeing this united team play beautiful football and consistently win, do you regret your earlier statement that "some players in the team have special privileges and dignity that others don't have"? Do you regret what you said?

No regrets, not at all. My view remains the same as before. Yes, there are players in the team who have special privileges and dignity. For me, that's clear and very precise. But I want to add something: even so, the team's rules apply equally to everyone. This is an ongoing process. Throughout my long career as a coach, I've always thought this way, and I will continue to maintain this philosophy in the future.

Coach, let's talk about the match. Portugal conceded twice from the opponent but the entire team never lost its composure or confidence. For you, does this demonstrate a mature team that can control the pace of the match, and even if they concede, they don't panic but continue to press forward and score?

This is due to the players' extensive experience. They've all played in top clubs around the world, and they've encountered situations like this many times throughout their careers—for example, being ahead and then being equalized. But they have unwavering confidence in everything they do on the pitch.

The most important thing right now is that the entire team fully believes in and implements our tactical system. In my view, today's performance was the best of the last three matches. That's quite normal, actually. As we've accumulated more training sessions, the team has started to demonstrate tactical details in certain phases of the match that we didn't have time to practice before.

Recently, I've been intensifying special positioning exercises. What everyone can clearly see today is that Gonçalo Ramos's goal came from a brilliant combination of positional play. João Cancelo's goal appears to have come more directly from a quick counterattack. The tactical concept aligns completely with the positioning and tactical adjustments we emphasized during training sessions over the past two days.

Yes, that's correct. Football matches aren't won simply through counterattacks or brilliant positioning play. As everyone knows, there are five phases in a football match, and understanding and controlling all five phases is crucial. We face opponents who are physically stronger than us, but we've maintained good defensive organization and solid defensive reactions. Our defensive line also provided excellent responses, which brought us closer to victory.

In summary, we scored many high-quality goals. I believe this victory has given the players even more confidence in what we're doing. I won't overemphasize importance—every match is equally important. But this victory has definitely reinforced the team's belief in our work and direction.

Good evening, Jorge. Whether we admit it or not, this match seems to mark the beginning of a new era for the national team, or at least display the characteristics of a new era. The players' reactions on the pitch today, Bruno Fernandes's leadership, Gonçalo Ramos's goals, and the pressing football you specifically praised—is this a signal the team is sending to the outside world? Is it proof that the team is in good shape and full of hope?

No, this isn't a deliberate political message or announcement to the outside world. If there's a signal to send, it's one of "quality". That's what I want the team to demonstrate—showing quality football and proving that we understand every detail on the pitch.

We're a team that takes risks in defense. As you can see, we press the opponent's half-field with our shape, and our center-backs even directly enter the opponent's penalty area to press our targets. We're a team that fully accepts these risks and completely believes in our tactical system. For me, that's what matters most. And the players genuinely enjoy this style of play. That they embrace this risky but rewarding philosophy shows they're elite-level players with outstanding abilities.

Good evening, Coach. I noticed that from when the team left the hotel, to when the bus arrived at the stadium, to after the match when you briefly gave an interview by the pitch, and then when you left the grass—there were some critical voices. However, after the match, I noticed you deliberately gathered with the players and directed them toward the stands to thank the fans and show appreciation for their support. For you, is it important to feel the support of the national team's fans in a special situation like this?

Critical voices? I didn't hear any criticism from Portuguese fans. I didn't notice anything at all. But I was very close to the Portuguese fans at that time, so I didn't hear anything. That said, what matters most—whether after victory or defeat—is respecting the fans who traveled from far away to support us. Most of them drove hundreds or even thousands of kilometers, or came by other means of transport. They came because they wanted close contact with the national team.

As a coach, I myself am a foreigner who has worked abroad for the past six years. That's why I deeply understand that when people live and work abroad, their sense of homeland and national pride becomes even stronger. There's no doubt about it—I'm not saying they become "more Portuguese" than those living at home. But there are deeper emotional connections involved. That's why I clearly know that these fans abroad have a strong sense of ownership and belonging to our flag, our people, and our country. Because everyone understands the precious value of this support.

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