Cristiano Ronaldo attracted headlines after making the decision not to attend Diogo Jota‘s funeral, which the Portugal captain has now explained.Jota tragically passed away along with his brother Andre Silva on July 3, with a funeral service held in their hometown of Gondomar two days later.The majority of his Liverpool teammates were able to attend along with the likes of Jordan Henderson, Thiago, James Milner, Fabinho, Caoimhin Kelleher and many of his Portuguese compatriots.A notable absentee for the tabloid press was Ronaldo, who has since explained why he made the decision not to pay his respects in public. “After my father died, I’ve never been to a cemetery again,” he said as part of an interview for Piers Morgan Uncensored.“You know me and you know my reputation, wherever I go it’s a circus.“I also didn’t go because if I went the attention would go to me, and I don’t want this kind of attention.”He added: “I felt good with my decision. I don’t need to be in the first line so people see me.“I planned things, I thought about his family. I don’t need to be in the cameras, I do it behind the scenes, I feel better in that.”Jota shared the pitch with Ronaldo on 32 occasions for Portugal, and the 40-year-old gave his insight into the person as well as the player.“Diogo was one of us. A very good guy, quiet guy, a good player as you know. But very level-headed,” he continued.“I really liked to meet him, to share with him some great moments.“It was sad. I had the opportunity to speak with their family and give support, because these moments we cannot explain.“Everything is gone because of one moment. We have to enjoy the life we live.”On hearing the news of Jota and his brother’s death, Ronaldo said: “I didn’t believe it when they sent me the message.“I cried a lot. It was a very, very difficult moment for everyone. For the country, for families, for friends, for teammates. Very, very, very sad news.”Diogo and Andre were honoured with tributes by the Portugal national team as well as their clubs, with Liverpool retiring his No. 20 shirt, while supporters sing Jota’s song in the 20th minute of every game.