Erik ten Hag is likely to start including Cristiano Ronaldo in his team more often in the near future despite the distracting summer transfer window saga at Manchester United.
Ronaldo missed much of Man Utd’s pre-season and now seems to be paying the price by having to make do with a place on the bench for most games.
It remains to be seen if the veteran Portugal international is really an ideal fit for Ten Hag’s style of football, with the team flourishing at the moment thanks to the improved form of Marcus Rashford and others in Ronaldo’s absence.
Still, writing in his exclusive column for CaughtOffside, Fabrizio Romano says he expects Ronaldo to start featuring more for Ten Hag soon, with the 37-year-old being perfectly professional and having no issues with the Dutch tactician’s decisions so far.
“All sources now tell me that Cristiano is working at the best level, he has never created a problem in training sessions and is respecting all the decisions of Erik ten Hag,” Romano explained.
“Ronaldo has spent a lot of time on the bench, but Manchester United know that Ten Hag wants to involve him more and more in the coming weeks.”
United fans will hope things don’t end on a sour note between their club and this legendary figure in their history, so these words from Romano will surely be encouraging.
Speaking to CaughtOffside earlier this week, former United player Luke Chadwick also said he expected Ronaldo could still have a key role for the team this season, even if he’s not starting every game.
“I don’t think Ronaldo’s going to start every game, but with the massive volume of fixtures because of the way they’re cramming them in in this World Cup year, there’s going to be opportunities for him,” Chadwick said.
“I was fully expecting him to leave, but he looks like he’s in a good place and his attitude’s been bang-on.”
Ronaldo scored 24 goals for United last season, finishing as their top scorer despite the club’s poor season overall.