Cristiano Ronaldo made a scathing attack on Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag over the club’s recent underwhelming performances. The Portuguese attacker left Manchester United on poor terms after having differences with Ten Hag during his final days at the club. Ronaldo re-joined United in 2021 and got a warm reception from the fans with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in charge at the club, but soon he was sacked, and things started changing for the five-time Ballon d’Or.
He had disagreements with interim manager Ralf Ragnick during his time at the club, and things got worse for him after Ten Hag’s arrival.
In 2022, Ronaldo gave an interview to Piers Morgan where he criticised Manchester United and Ten Hag following which the club parted ways with the Portuguese skipper.
Two years after leaving United, Ronaldo has once again fired shots at Ten Hag’s mindset and approach and said a Manchester United coach should not have a mentality that the team can’t fight for the league and UCL title.
“They need to rebuild everything, in my opinion. The coach, they say they cannot compete to win the League and Champions League. Manchester United coach, you cannot say that you’re not going to fight to win the League or Champions League. You have to be, to mentally say, listen, maybe we don’t have that potential, but I cannot say that. We’re going to try. You have to try,” Ronaldo told Rio Ferdinand in a podcast.
The Red Devils are going through a tough phase as they failed to qualify for the Champions League and also started the Premier League this season with two losses in three matches. The club has spent big money in the last few transfer windows but have failed to produce results on the field.
The Al Nassr striker further suggested that Ten Hag should take assistance from Ruud van Nistelrooy who recently joined United’s coaching staff.
“If Ten Hag listens to Ruud, maybe he can (help himself). I think it can help a lot because he knows the club and the club should listen (to) the guys who were there. You [Rio] or Roy Keane or Paul Scholes or Gary Neville, whatever, Sir Alex Ferguson. You cannot, you cannot rebuild a club without knowledge. Not guys who work in office. They understand,” he added.
The 39-year-old superstar asserted that it’s important to have old players who have knowledge about the club to be part of the United so that they can redeem themselves.
“The people who understand the football, it was, 99 per cent is the people who were there in the dressing room. They know how to deal with the players. It’s the people who understand these things. So I believe that Ruud is going to help because he was inside the club. He knows the club. He knows the fans. If the coach listens to him, I think they can improve a little bit the club,” he said.
