Qatar 2022: Ex-South Korea coach Bento reflects on Ronaldo's hot moment with Cho Gue-sung

Former South Korea head coach Paulo Bento has opened up on Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo's passionate moment with Cho Gue-sung during the 2022 FIFA World Cup at the Qatar.

Ronaldo entered the 2022 World Cup with a point to prove after his contract with Manchester United was terminated by mutual consent.

The 37-year-old started the tournament on a high note, scoring in Portugal's 3-2 win over Ghana's Black Stars in their opener.

However, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner was then relegated to the bench for Portugal's knockout matches before being knocked out of the World Cup.

The then Portugal head coach, Fernando Santos, notably let Ronaldo down after he reacted angrily to being substituted in the Selecao's final group stage game against South Korea.

Addressing the incident after the match, Santos claimed that Ronaldo was responding to South Korea's Gue-sung for allegedly insulting him.

But Bento, who was South Korea's coach at the World Cup, has now hinted that there was no provocation by Gue-sung.

According to him, Gue-sung was used to cover up the tensions between Ronaldo and Santos.

"On the bench, compared to my player, I didn't notice anything at all. I know I told him [Ronaldo] when he left, but everything that was done around that, the South Korean player was kind of used to cover up other things and that's not nice," Bento told Portuguese sports daily Record.

He added, "I have nothing to do with what happened, but it's not honest for us to justify our actions to others. It doesn't seem ethical, fair or beautiful."