Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has conceded that Cristiano Ronaldo is “p*ssed off” at having fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford.
The Portuguese sensation cut a dejected figure on the bench during Sunday’s Manchester Derby as Ten Hag’s men were comprehensibly torn asunder by Man City, losing 6-3, with Ronaldo cold-shouldered by his manager as he failed to enter the fray.
His appearance on the sidelines has been a continuous theme throughout Ten Hag’s early reign in the North West, starting just the single game, which came in Man Utd’s only other Premier League capitulation this term against Brentford.
Cristiano Ronaldo news: Why is Man Utd star “p*ssed off”?
- Ten Hag has admitted that Ronaldo is “p*ssed off” due to his lack of minutes in the Premier League (click here for full quotes).
- Ronaldo was an unused substitute in the club’s 6-3 defeat in the Manchester Derby on Sunday.
- The Portuguese has started just one Premier League game this season and come off the bench five times.
- Ronaldo is set to start in Man Utd’s UEL match against Omonia, and Sky Bet are offering odds of 3/1 for him to have 4+ shots on target.
Ronaldo attempted to engineer a move away from Man Utd in the summer but a sale ultimately failed to transpire. And now, he finds himself on the periphery of first-team action, the nadir of which came on Sunday as Ten Hag overlooked him altogether.
“He’s pissed off at not playing. But he is training well,” Ten Hag told reporters. ”I don’t see he is unhappy. He is happy, training well, everyone is.”
A video surfaced of a beaming Ronaldo laughing with his team-mates in training ahead of Man Utd’s Europa League showdown with Omonia Nicosia, reinforcing Ten Hag’s notion that the ageing superstar isn’t kicking up a stink behind the scenes.
Cristiano Ronaldo was in good spirits at #MUFC training this morning pic.twitter.com/CERpd7dFS7
— Simon Peach (@SimonPeach) October 5, 2022
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Ten Hag was accused off ‘disrespecting’ Ronaldo in the immediate aftermath of Sunday’s rout, with Graeme Souness and Roy Keane among those pedalling the line, but the Dutchman has been firm in his assessment that every player gets treated equally.
He added: ”I will treat everyone with respect but they all have different backgrounds, characters.
“I have to treat everyone different to get the best out of them, but there are general standards and values for everyone.”