Cristiano Ronaldo is looking forward to working with Carlos Queiroz once again after being called up to the Portugal squad to face Sweden and Albania. The Manchester United winger missed the first two World Cup qualifying matches under Queiroz through injury, as Portugal beat Malta in the opening game but then lost to a last-minute goal against Denmark. Now fully recovered, Ronaldo has revealed he is eager to work again with the former United assistant manager, and backed the new coach to excel despite a mixed start to the qualifying campaign.
"I missed being with the national team, being with my friends, and now with Carlos Queiroz I hope we can win," he told Portuguese newspaper Record. "From now until the end it's going to be difficult, we can't lose any more games like we did in the last one, but I'm hopeful we will qualify. I know Carlos quite well, I'm a fan and I really like the way he works. I'm hopeful he'll do a great job." Meanwhile, the Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra has withdrawn from the France squad ahead of Saturday's World Cup qualifier against Romania, suffering from an inflammation to his left knee.
* With agencies