How has Cristiano Ronaldo impacted Manchester United?

The highest international goalscorer and Manchester United number 7, Cristiano Ronaldo has been under fire because of his behavior. The Portuguese superstar became a hot topic after he walked out of the ground during Manchester United’s 2-0 victory against Tottenham Hotspurs.

It is not for the first time that Ronaldo is on the news this season as his performances until now have been very unfamiliar to what people are used to seeing. However, a player’s form comes and goes but his attitude towards the club have raised way too many eyebrows.

Even before the 2022/23 season began, there were reports that Cristiano Ronaldo is desperate for an exit from the red side of Manchester. He came back to the club after 18 years following a decent tenure with Italian outfit Juventus.

Other than Ronaldo, the English giants signed Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho with high hopes that the club would end their trophy drought. A lot was expected from them but all Manchester United could do was finish 7th last season. As a result, United failed to qualify for this season’s UEFA Champions League, which added even more salt to Cristiano’s wounds.

Although, he looked very good last year but he is looking like a shadow of himself this term. In 30 Premier League appearances last season, Ronaldo found the back of the net 18 times, finishing as the Club’s top-scorer. However, for the first time in almost 6 years, the Portuguese failed to win a silverware with his club.

His frustration was justified after United failed to reach the UCL group stages given the fact that he has won 5 UCL titles and is also the top-scorer in the history of the tournament. The highest international goal-scorer has found himself mostly on the bench this season and his behavior in the last match has put him under more trouble.

Cristiano Ronaldo not a part of Manchester United squad against Chelsea

Earlier this year in March when Manchester United met Spurs it was Ronaldo who rescued his side with his emphatic hat-trick at the Old Trafford. Fast forward to October 2022, he remains on the bench and when asked to come on he refuses as United were already 2-0 up.

The same was on display during the pre-season when Manchester United faced Rayo Vallecano and Ronaldo was seen leaving the Old Trafford at half-time. Ten hag labelled his actions as unacceptable suggesting the fact that the 37-year-old will have to fight for his place.

What happened in the talk is between Cristiano and me. The club statement is also clear. I am the manager, I’m responsible for the top sport culture here and I have to set standards and values, and I have to control them. We are in a team. After Rayo Vallecano I said it’s unacceptable but he wasn’t the only one. That is for everyone, when it’s the second time it will have consequence. That is now what we did. We’ll miss him tomorrow, it’s a miss for the squad but I think it’s important for the attitude, mentality for the group.

His relationship with new manager Erik Ten Hag seems to deteriorating day-by-day as the Dutch relegated him to train with the U-21s.. He remained as an unused substitute during the Manchester derby earlier this month where United suffered an embarrassing 6-3 loss.

The Portuguese ace has failed to retain his place in the United playing eleven under Ten Hag as Ronaldo has found the back of the net only twice in 12 outings. He has been struggling to comply with Ten Hag’s philosophy and playing style as the Dutch prefers to press high and asks players to react immediately in case the possession is lost.

The former Ajax manager has favored Marcus Rashford, who is quick and dynamic. However, ironically Ronaldo’s absence has actually went in the club’s favor. Whenever, Ronaldo has started (2) this season United covered 98.5 Kms and gained only 0.5 points per game but whenever he didn’t start (8) United covered 108.5 Kms and scored 2.25 points per game.

The only high this season for him has been Manchester United’s fixture against Everton where he scored his 700th club goal. With the World cup now just a few weeks away it will be interesting to see if Ronaldo can regain his form and comeback better.

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