LISBON (AFP) - Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo will not play in the friendly against Brazil in Boston on Tuesday.

The Real Madrid forward will be allowed to miss the game as he struggles with tendonitis, Portugal doctor Henrique Jones was quoted as saying by the Lusa news agency.

"He has had a week of intense treatment, he made an enormous sacrifice and now he needs to rest," Jones said after Portugal's 4-2 victory in Northern Ireland which kept them on top of World Cup qualifying Group F, two points clear of Russia but having played a game more.

The 28-year-old Ronaldo was the star of the show for Portugal, helping his side recover from 1-2 down with a second-half hat-trick in Belfast. It was his first hat-trick for his country and left him with 43 goals for his country, ahead of the great Eusebio (41) and trailing only Pauleta (47).