Goncalo Ramos backed to thrive at AC Milan after Portugal winner

Portugal sealed a Nations League quarter-final place with a 2-1 win over Norway, and Ramos marked the decisive moment after acting on a late touchline instruction from Jesus.

Jesus backs Ramos to make impact at Milan

Jesus believes Ramos is ready to thrive at Milan and says the forward’s progress since their time together at Benfica will help both the Rossoneri and coach Ruben Amorim.

• Ramos has been in strong form for Portugal during the latest Nations League run.
• Jesus pointed to the striker’s assist against Denmark as further evidence of his influence.
• The coach said Ramos has developed substantially since beginning his Benfica career under him.
• Jesus is convinced the forward’s continued growth will benefit Milan and Amorim.

“When he began at Benfica, he was a different player because he has grown enormously,” Jesus said. “I coached him then, and I know he will help Milan and Ruben Amorim. He is improving a lot.”

Touchline order delivers winning goal

Ramos revealed that Jesus had told him to get into the penalty area shortly before he scored the winner against Norway.

The forward had drifted towards the right flank when his manager called him back inside. Within minutes, Ramos had found the net, prompting a light-hearted exchange between the pair.

“A minute or two before the goal, I moved a little to the right and the boss told me to go into the box,” Ramos said. “Two minutes later I scored, and he said: ‘See, I told you.’ It was another funny moment with him.”

Portugal using matches to develop new system

Jesus said the international schedule has left little room for conventional training, forcing Portugal to use meetings away from the pitch and competitive fixtures themselves to establish his approach.

• Jesus has held tactical sessions in meeting rooms because of the shortage of preparation time.
• His priorities have been improving Portugal’s defensive structure and positional attacking play.
• He described positional attack as the most difficult phase of the game to develop.
• The coach said the squad have progressed through matches as though those games were training exercises.

“We had no time to prepare, so we were improving through the matches as if they were sessions,” Jesus explained. “Training is the test of truth, so I had to use theory and held several sessions in the room. I wanted to improve the defensive concept and positional attack.”

What happens next

Ramos said Portugal remain determined to win every match and target the Nations League trophy, even while adapting to a new manager’s methods.

He believes the progress has been evident across Portugal’s four recent fixtures, with the players using each game to sharpen their understanding despite the limited time on the training ground.