01/10/2026
🚨 Pepe's statement regarding the assignment of the No. 7 shirt to Rafael Leão, less than 24 hours after Cristiano Ronaldo left the Portugal national team camp:
🗣 Pepe: "To be honest, I felt real pain when I saw the announcement that Rafael Leão would wear the No. 7 shirt against Denmark.
My intention is not to diminish Rafael; he did nothing wrong at all. He is a fantastic player, and I hope he has a great match. But my pain comes from what this number represents.
Cristiano had just left the camp, and before even 24 hours passed, we immediately announced a replacement for his number! Some might say it's just a shirt, but it isn't. Cristiano wasn't just a player wearing the No. 7; he made it into the iconic (CR7) symbol and one of the most recognizable figures in football history.
Look at Argentina with Messi. They understood completely that when a legend of that caliber leaves, you don't rush to replace everything he represented, so they left the No. 10 vacant out of respect for his legacy. Portugal should have shown that same respect to Cristiano.
I know match regulations require someone to wear the No. 7 shirt, and Leão bears no responsibility for this decision. What truly bothered me was the timing. Ronaldo gave more than 20 years of his life to Portugal, wearing the national shirt through victories, defeats, criticism, injuries, and doubts. And now, immediately after his departure from camp, we see a rapid announcement giving it to another player!
Perhaps there was no bad intent, but football is about the messages we send. We cannot erase the history of (CR7) in a single day, nor replace a two-decade journey with a swift announcement.
Rafael Leão is capable of writing his own story and making a name for himself with the No. 7, but he should never be asked to carry the weight of Ronaldo's legacy. There will be many players who wear the No. 7, but there will never be another Cristiano Ronaldo."