Most fans understood the pros and cons of bringing him back to United, and you'd hope the club did too. (And, before we get hypocritical about this, others in his position, from Michael Jordan to Tom Brady to Diego Maradona, have also not been treated like the bulk of their teammates.) But also, like many ultra-elite athletes, a protected species who lives in an echo chamber of "yes men" and is accustomed to being treated differently because, well, he's different. I'd imagine most United fans see Ronaldo for what he is: a legitimate GOAT candidate who achieved more than almost anyone who has played the sport and who was instrumental to their success in his first stint with the club (and the €100m fee he fetched when moved to Real Madrid was a world-record fee). Let's leave the pompousness about "Ronaldo ruining his legacy at the club" and other nonsense to one side. Least of all Mendes, Ronaldo's longtime agent, who is having a nightmarish few months. That's the obvious starting point here, and why nobody should be wholly surprised that things turned out the way they did. Ogden: Is this a desperate act by Ronaldo? (Ten Hag is pretty blameless in that regard, despite repeatedly saying that Ronaldo was never going to be a problem and talking about how he wanted him to stay: He was a newly installed manager, he had very little clout at that time and was in no position to make demands of anyone.) We don't know exactly what the holdup was and where the blame lies for the fact that he stayed at Old Trafford, but it's evident that both the club and Ronaldo's agent, Jorge Mendes (as well as Ronaldo himself), are all responsible for the fact that no deal was struck. The move never materialised mainly because the clubs who could afford Ronaldo didn't want him at anything near his current salary (or didn't want him at all), Ronaldo wasn't prepared to take a sufficient pay cut and United weren't willing to take a financial hit to let him go (something they could have done by waiving the transfer fee or simply paying part of the wages owed to him in 2022-23). And at age 37, with a year left on his massive contract, it made little sense for him to stick around. Not because he wasn't productive - lest we forget, he was the third-highest scorer in the Premier League last season - but because the club recognized they were embarking on a long rebuild process and that Ronaldo simply doesn't fit the style of football Ten Hag played at Ajax. United and Ronaldo's agent spent last summer trying to get him a move. Especially since - let's face it - he doesn't come at this from a position of strength. And while Ronaldo isn't "any player," the rules apply to him as well. Any player who comes out so explicitly against his manager and the folks running his club is unlikely to ever play for the club again, barring some improbable 180-degree turn. It's easy to get emotional, and to be sure, right now everybody is vilifying Ronaldo. Ronaldo: I have no respect for Ten Hag, as he doesn't respect me But of course, it's all overshadowed by Cristiano Ronaldo's bombshell interview in which he said he felt disrespected by coach Erik ten Hag and therefore "doesn't respect" the United manager. It's Monday, and we really should be talking about Alejandro Garnacho's last-ditch winner for Manchester United against Fulham and how they've lost just once since Oct. Ronaldo's words give both him and Man United a chance to move on It's Monday, and Gab Marcotti reacts to the biggest moments in the world of football. Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, more (U.S.) There were concerns for Man City and Milan to dissect during the break, too, but the biggest event of all was arguably Sunday night's seismic remarks by Cristiano Ronaldo about his unhappiness at Manchester United. There were big wins for Juventus, Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool. This was the final weekend before European soccer goes on hold until after the World Cup, and it certainly delivered plenty for us to talk and think about over the coming weeks. Will Ronaldo comments help him, Man United break ties? Plus: Juventus show form Man City drop points You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browser
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