As Cristiano Ronaldo continues to be the main topic of discussion at Manchester United and Gary Neville can only see one ‘’messy’’ end to the saga.
A very productive week for the Red Devils brought four points from games against Tottenham and Chelsea. Although, even in the aftermath of the late Casemiro-inspired draw at Stamford Bridge, Ronaldo still dominated all the conversation after being dropped for leaving Old Trafford early during the win over Spurs. Neville – who has often supported his former teammate – is struggling to defend his recent behaviour and agrees with how Erik ten Hag has dealt with the situation.
“For me, Erik ten Hag had no choice, no option,” he said on Sky Sports. “Cristiano’s left the ground twice, you can’t do that, his Instagram post which said I respect my team-mates and sometimes in the heat of the moment you do something wrong. On the eve of pre-season, he asked for a transfer, he’s building up a list of things. It’s a messy end and Ten Hag is trying to establish control.”
The likes of Roy Keane and other former Manchester United stars might not want to hear it, but statistics show that the team has been more effective in the 37-year-old’s absence this season. Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial have been trusted to lead the line ahead of Ronaldo, who has been restricted to just two Premier League starts so far.
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