"Ask for Forgiveness": Rio Explodes At Jorge Over Ronaldo Treatment

Former England and Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand launched a scathing attack on Portugal boss Jorge Jesus, accusing him of mistreating legendary striker Cristiano Ronaldo and saying that he must "ask for forgiveness". The Al Nassr star left the national team camp early after a breakdown in communication during the UEFA Nations League, with the 41-year-old's role under Jorge, who was also part of Al Nassr's trophy-winning set-up with Cristiano, coming under question. Tensions reached their peak when Portugal played Norway. Ahead of the match, Cristiano was instructed to warm up with the expectation of featuring later in the contest. However, Jorge eventually decided against bringing him on, leaving the legendary striker frustrated on the bench.

While Jorge claimed that Cristiano was left out for tactical reasons, it only added to the growing rift between the once-close coach-player pair.

Ferdinand, Cristiano's teammate at Manchester United from 2003 to 2009, jumped to the legend's defence, saying on his 'Rio Presents' podcast, as quoted by Goal.com: "Cristiano Ronaldo was put in a very bad situation and was treated in an inappropriate way. He has an enormous history in football. Jorge Jesus did not deal with Ronaldo well and chose to treat him in that way, but I cannot find any explanation for it. This manager thinks he is Alex Ferguson or Pep Guardiola."

"I do not know why he puts himself among the great managers. I cannot find an explanation for it. He should have shown Cristiano Ronaldo the respect he deserved," he added.

Ferdinand argued that the fallout between Cristiano and Jorge was rooted in poor management and a failure to give the superstar a clearly defined role. He said it had created an environment of uncertainty that mirrored previous struggles within the team's dressing room during major tournaments.

"The coach must come and ask for forgiveness... otherwise he will end up being fired. He must come out and say: 'Listen, I misjudged this situation'," he added.

Despite the debate surrounding Cristiano's age and where he fits into the modern game, Ferdinand feels that the veteran still has a lot to offer his country, and the challenge is to find the balance between the player's ego and the team's needs.

"I believe he still has a role to play. The question is whether it will be as a starter, as an important substitute in some games, or even if he will start in some and come on in others. This is what needs to be discussed, and then it will just be a matter of respecting the agreements made. These coaches are paid to manage a team, but they are also paid to manage people," Ferdinand signed off.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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Gemini AI Paywall: Google Restricts Free Users To Flash-Lite Model From October 9

Google is reworking which Gemini models are available on each of its plans. Starting October 9, users on the free tier and the AI Plus plan will lose access to some models, while AI Pro subscribers are set to gain a feature that was previously exclusive to the top tier. The company also appears to be working on new reasoning controls for the Gemini app.

What Changes for Free and AI Plus Users

According to an updated Google support document, people without a Google AI subscription will be left with only Flash-Lite from October 9. Flash and Pro will no longer be part of the free plan.

AI Plus, which costs $4.99 (roughly Rs 500) a month, will keep Flash-Lite and Flash but drop the Pro model. Google said affected AI Plus users will get an email telling them when their accounts will switch over.

AI Pro and AI Ultra subscribers keep all three models: Flash-Lite, Flash and Pro.

ALSO READ | Gemini 4 Argon: Google Unveils New Frontier AI Model — Prices, Features And Key Things Explained

Why Usage Limits Matter More Now

The changes come after Google started measuring Gemini usage earlier this year based on how much computing power each request requires. This means that heavier requests, such as tricky questions, long back-and-forth chats or the more advanced models, draw down a user's quota more quickly.

Deep Think Arrives on AI Pro

Until now, Deep Think was available only to AI Ultra subscribers. It is now coming to the AI Pro plan, priced at $19.99 (roughly Rs 1,900) a month. AI Ultra users, on either the $99.99 (roughly Rs 9,600) or $199.99 (roughly Rs 19,300) monthly plan, will still have it. Deep Think tackles complex tasks using parallel reasoning and works only with the Pro model.

ALSO READ | Google Photos Gets An AI Boost With Redact Tool, 'Vintage' Moods And Expanded AI Wardrobe

New Thinking Levels May Be On The Way

Gemini could let users pick from Low, Medium and High thinking settings to decide how much effort the chatbot puts into a response. Choosing a higher level could use up more of a user's allowance. Right now, the Gemini app has an Extended Thinking option for harder problems. Google AI Studio and Antigravity already give users comparable controls.

Gemini 4 Argon Testing Continues

Google is also preparing to roll out Gemini 4 Argon more widely. The model is currently being tested by trusted cybersecurity professionals under the company's Fairwind programme. AI Ultra subscribers and paying API customers will get access at a later stage. It's still unclear whether Argon will sit within the Pro tier or in a separate, higher tier.

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Oppo F35 Pro 5G First Impressions

Oppo F35 Pro 5G has been launched in India, marking 10 years of the company’s F series in the country. Here are our first impressions. The Oppo F35 Pro 5G is offered in three colour options, including Sunset Orange, Twilight Brown, and Wave Blue. I got the orange option, which appears to be the most eye-catching and appealing out of the lot. The smartphone feels light to hold and offers a good in-hand feel. It continues to sport the Smile Curve Design rear camera module, which was also seen last year on the Oppo F33 Pro 5G.

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Abhinav Bindra After Asian Games: "Los Angeles Less Than Two Years Away"

Olympic champion shooter Abhinav Bindra on Sunday congratulated Indian athletes for their Asian Games campaign but called for greater urgency in strengthening the country's high-performance ecosystem with the Los Angeles Olympics less than two years away. India finished at the fourth place on the medal table with 85 medals, including 21 gold, 27 silver and 37 bronze. "Congratulations to every Indian athlete and to Team India on the Asian Games. A Games campaign is never just the few days we see on television. It is years of early mornings, injuries, doubts, missed occasions and countless hours of work.

"So first and foremost, enormous respect to our athletes and also to their families who live this journey with them and make sacrifices that are rarely seen. To the coaches, support staff, federations, SAI, the Government and everyone working behind the scenes, THANK YOU !," Bindra wrote on 'X'.

"There have been some terrific breakthrough performances at these Games. Young athletes have announced themselves, others have stepped up to a new level and there have been moments that give us a lot to be excited about."

Congratulations to every Indian athlete and to Team India on the Asian Games. A Games campaign is never just the few days we see on television. It is years of early mornings, injuries, doubts, missed occasions and countless hours of work. So first and foremost, enormous respect to our athletes and also to their families who live this journey with them and make sacrifices that are rarely seen. To the coaches, support staff, federations, SAI, the Government and everyone working behind the scenes, THANK YOU ! There have been some terrific breakthrough performances at these Games. Young athletes have announced themselves, others have stepped up to a new level and there have been moments that give us a lot to be excited about. There have also been disappointments. That is sport and every Games will have them. What matters now is how honestly we learn from them. High performance cannot only be about reacting when an athlete is close to a medal. We have to keep building systems that understand the athlete over several years. Systems that spot gaps early, use science and data intelligently, get coaching and competition planning right, manage training load and recovery, reduce preventable injuries and build athletes who are physically and mentally resilient when the pressure is greatest. Most importantly, the right expertise has to reach the athlete at the right stage of their career, not when it is already too late. LA is less than two years away. In Olympic sport that is not a long time. The athletes who will stand on the podium there are already deep into their preparation today. So this is the moment to celebrate what went well, be honest about what did not and get back to work with urgency and purpose. Congratulations again to our athletes and to everyone who stood behind them. Be proud of what has been achieved. Learn from these Games and keep moving forward. Wishing Team India everything good on the road to LA.

— Abhinav A. Bindra OLY (@Abhinav_Bindra) October 4, 2026

India's medal tally was 21 medals and seven golds fewer than the 106-medal haul, achieved in the last edition at Hangzhou, China.

China topped the table for the 12th consecutive edition, finishing with 169 gold, 89 silver and 83 bronze for a total of 341 medals, its best haul at an overseas Asian Games. Host Japan ended second with 269 medals (83 gold, 95 silver and 91 bronze), followed by South Korea with 39 gold, 43 silver and 68 bronze.

"There have also been disappointments. That is sport and every Games will have them. What matters now is how honestly we learn from them. High performance cannot only be about reacting when an athlete is close to a medal. We have to keep building systems that understand the athlete over several years," he said.

"Systems that spot gaps early, use science and data intelligently, get coaching and competition planning right, manage training load and recovery, reduce preventable injuries and build athletes who are physically and mentally resilient when the pressure is greatest. Most importantly, the right expertise has to reach the athlete at the right stage of their career, not when it is already too late."

Looking ahead to the Los Angeles Olympics, Bindra said the next phase of preparation needs to begin with urgency.

"LA is less than two years away. In Olympic sport that is not a long time. The athletes who will stand on the podium there are already deep into their preparation today. So this is the moment to celebrate what went well, be honest about what did not and get back to work with urgency and purpose.

"Congratulations again to our athletes and to everyone who stood behind them. Be proud of what has been achieved. Learn from these Games and keep moving forward. Wishing Team India everything good on the road to LA."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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