Maniche denounces ‘lies’ targeting Cristiano and Portugal

Maniche has denounced a wave of “lies” targeting Cristiano and Portugal, accusing those behind them of trying to “manufacture hatred”. The former player spoke out after fabricated remarks circulated on social media, presented as a harsh criticism of Cristiano Ronaldo as he faces a crisis with manager Jorge Jesus.

On his official Instagram account, Maniche challenged the quote. The image he shared was marked “FALSE” and attributed these words to him: the Portugal team supposedly had “a player under control who doesn’t want anyone else to become a star”. He also wrote: “Someone decided to make it up, put my face on it and spread it as if it were true.”

The former Atlético player summed up his denunciation this way: “It is manufacturing lies to generate hatred.” He also condemned the methods behind the claims: “This is neither opinion nor journalism. It is manufacturing lies to generate clicks, hatred and division.”

Maniche says he expresses his views live and under his own name, and urges anyone who wants to know what he thinks to listen to him rather than trust fake accounts. A former teammate of Cristiano Ronaldo, he has become another target of misinformation surrounding the crisis involving the manager and the player. Maniche played for Atlético from 2006 to 2009 and earned 52 caps for Portugal.