Ronaldo focused on Confederations Cup, says Portugal team-mate Andre Silva

17 June 2017 15:24

Cristiano Ronaldo is not letting accusations of tax fraud and fresh transfer speculation get to him, according to Portugal team-mate Andre Silva.

The 32-year-old Real Madrid striker, who is in Russia as Portugal prepare for their Confederations Cup opener against Mexico, is said to be "outraged" after prosecutors accused him of defrauding the authorities of 14.7million euros (£12.8million).

A source claims Ronaldo "feels great indignation" with all the conjecture about his tax affairs and a sense of "injustice" at the allegations - which he contests - and has made a decision to leave Spain.

That has prompted speculation linking him with Paris St Germain and Manchester United amongst others, but Silva, who completed a big-money switch to AC Milan from Porto earlier this month, insists the four-time Champions League winner remains focused on his country's upcoming matches.

"Regarding Ronaldo, he is motivated, and what I can see is that he is taking the competition very seriously and is totally dedicated to training and thinking about the next game against Mexico," Silva told reporters ahead of the European champions' opening game.

"As for my partnership with Ronaldo, it's a dream. Since I began playing on big stages I always imagined playing alongside him or playing on the same level as him. I'm happy to play with my captain."

Meanwhile, Mexico forward Raul Jimenez, who plays his club football in Portugal with Benfica, is confident his team-mates can keep Ronaldo quiet at the Kazan Arena.

The 26-year-old told the official website of the Confederations Cup: "It goes without saying that he's a great player. But we're a great side too, and I'm sure we can stop him.

"We're a tight-knit team and we really understand all the different phases we have to go through: when it's time to train we train, and when it's time to kick back and relax we do that too.

"It doesn't matter what your name is or the league you play in: we're all in this together and we're all fighting for the same objective. That's very important."

Source: PA