Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo will miss the friendly match against Brazil on Tuesday, said Portugal’s national team doctor.

The Real Madrid attacker played and scored a hat-trick in a  4-2 win over Northern Ireland on September 6, despite the fact that he was suffering with a knee injury.

Having sacrificed himself for that World Cup qualifier, it has been decided that the 28-year-old should sit out against the Brazilians to avoid aggravating the complaint further.

“Ronaldo has had a week of intense treatment, he made an enormous sacrifice and now he needs to rest,” Portugal’s team doctor Henrique Jones told reporters.

Ronaldo’s trio of goals took him above Eusebio as Portugal‘s second-highest goalscorer of all time.