During a conversation with a senior executive, according to recent reports, Cristiano Ronaldo labelled his Manchester United return ‘a disaster’ and slammed some of his teammates.
That’s according to a recent report from The Sun, who explain that a new book titled “Messi vs Ronaldo: One Rivalry, Two GOATs, and the Era That Remade the World’s Game”, which is set to be published next month, reveals exactly how the Portuguese superstar feels about his decision to return to Old Trafford last summer.
Having left Juventus just over 12 months ago, Ronaldo, who was reportedly also wanted by rivals Manchester City, ended up returning to the Red Devils, 12 years after departing in favour of an £85m switch to Real Madrid, and according to this new book, it was Rio Ferdinand who helped persuade the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.
However, despite marking his second debut with a brace against Newcastle United, things have since turned sour and although it remains unknown if the 37-year-old will leave in January, one thing that is virtually a given is that he will not stay with the 20-time league winners longer than his current deal, which is set to expire at the end of the season.
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The book, which also details Lionel Messi’s remarkable career, also focuses on Ronaldo’s United return.
Sections of the book say how Ronaldo was ‘unhappy’ with life under former interim boss Ralf Rangnick with the attacker believed to have told a senior executive that “this is a disaster”.
There are also snippets on how the former Real Madrid and Juventus star feels frustrated by the club’s sub-par training facilities and the shock he felt by some of his United teammates not showing the same level of commitment to ensure they remain in top physical condition.
Ronaldo’s latest antics saw him refuse to come on as a substitute for Erik Ten Hag during United’s two-nil win against Spurs before storming off down the tunnel ahead of time.
However, despite being punished by the club and forced to miss their next game against Chelsea, the 37-year-old was recalled back to first-team action earlier this week where he scored against FC Sheriff in the Europa League.
Although his future remains very much up in the air, Ten Hag has been consistent in his message that Ronaldo is an ‘important player’ and still has a role to play.
Speaking ahead of his side’s upcoming Premier League game against West Ham on Sunday afternoon, Ten Hag, as quoted by Fabrizio Romano, said: “Did Cristiano Ronaldo apologize? Enough said on that, so I gave enough explanations. We are happy that he’s here, Cristiano is an important player.
“Thursday he scored and we are happy about that. He can even be more important.”