Rui Patricio's sexologist wife once claimed Portugal players should masturbate ahead of World Cup matches

Rui Patricio’s sex therapist wife once encouraged the Portugal squad to masturbate before their World Cup matches in a bid to improve their performances.

Patricio initially married Joana Pereira in 2011 after a seven-year-long relationship, but the pair divorced on Christmas Eve of that year.

However, the 34-year-old Roma star eventually moved on and tied the knot for the second time to sexologist Vera Ribeiro.

Speaking on Portuguese TV, the sexologist once said: “The football player should not abstain from having sex before games, but we also know that in terms of routine they are not in contact with families either.

“We cannot associate sports performance with the occurrence of sex.”

Ribeiro also rubbished the idea that not having sex before big sporting events was positive for athletes.

The 34-year-old stunner, who has a psychology degree and also a masters in sexology, insisted that “nothing positive can come from abstinence” in her 2018 book ‘Manual of Seduction.’

Whether or not the Portugal squad heeded Ribeiro’s advice, Fernando Santos’ men fell well short of their World Cup title bid in Russia in 2018.

The 2016 Euro champions were dumped out of the round of 16 in a 2-1 defeat to Uruguay in the 2018 World Cup.

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However, fast-forward four years on and both Portugal manager Santos and Ronaldo are once again vying for the World Cup title.

Portugal finished top of Group H, ahead of South Korea, and punched their ticket to the last 16 for a World Cup clash with Switzerland in Qatar.