Mueez Ajao
– Cristiano Ronaldo’s future has dominated headlines this summer after the superstar forward asked to leave the club last month.
– Shortly after the news of Ronaldo’s desire to depart Old Trafford broke, the 37-year-old was left out of Erik ten Hag’s 31-man squad for the tour of Thailand and Australia, with Ronaldo’s absence said to be due to family reasons.
– After several weeks of endless rumours, Ronaldo made his return to Old Trafford last week when he played the first half of United’s final friendly of the summer – a 1-1 draw with Rayo Vallecano.
Also Read: Ronaldo leaves stadium before final whistle of Man Utd draw
– Ronaldo did little talking on the pitch in his 45-minute appearance and spectacularly, he was spotted leaving Old Trafford before the final whistle had been blown.
– Now, Erik ten Hag has slammed his star striker, alongside other players who seemingly left before time was up insisting that their behaviour was ‘unacceptable’.
– “I certainly don’t condone this. This is unacceptable. For everyone. We are a team and then you have to stay until the end,” Ten Hag told Viaplay Sport Netherlands, via Dutch publication AD.
Erik ten Hag gaat in op het gedrag van Cristiano Ronaldo. Net als andere spelers ging hij afgelopen weekend na de rust naar huis toe. Hoe gaat de trainer van Manchester United hiermee om?⁰
Het hele interview is later te zien in de Viaplay-uitzendingen van de Premier League. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/gIFJcL8QQE
— Viaplay Sport Nederland (@viaplaysportnl) August 3, 2022
Erik ten Hag on Cristiano Ronaldo and other Man Utd players leaving Old Trafford early vs Rayo: “I don’t certainly accept this. I think this is unacceptable. For everyone”, tells @viaplaysportnl. 🚨🔴 #MUFC
“We are a team and you have to stay until the end”, ten Hag says. pic.twitter.com/Ysm2G4e7Rp
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 3, 2022
Erik ten Hag slams Cristiano Ronaldo and other Manchester United stars for 'unacceptable' mistake #mufc https://t.co/PswglqvZSn pic.twitter.com/ISz81AV74o
— Man United News (@ManUtdMEN) August 3, 2022
– With his future still unresolved, the Premier League kicks off this coming weekend as Brighton visit Old Trafford on Sunday.
– The Daily Mail report that Ronaldo is not part of Erik ten Hag’s plans to start the league opener. Instead, the Dutchman is looking to reward Jadon Sancho, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford for their good pre-season form with the Red Devils.
– The only option currently on the table for Ronaldo to start against Brighton is that Martial is yet to recover from the hamstring discomfort that caused him to withdraw from the game against Atletico Madrid .
– That is unlikely to be the case though and the veteran will likely have to settle for the bench at best.
– It is widely assumed that Ronaldo and his agent, Jorge Mendes, had confidence that a major club would have wanted to sign the former Real Madrid man when they told United that he wanted to leave.
– No offers have come in for him from Champions League sides and now he has had to return to United and start preparing for the new season.
