Ten Hag is adamant that Cristiano Ronaldo still has a future at Manchester United despite the Portuguese star being humiliated by being benched for his team’s thrilling 2-1 victory over Liverpool.
Without Ronaldo, United looked much more dynamic as they upset Liverpool to snap a miserable streak of two straight Premier League losses.
On Monday at Old Trafford, with the ailing Ronaldo restricted to a late-game substitution, United was finally able to execute Ten Hag’s aggressive game strategy.
In the 2-1 loss at Brighton and the next 4-0 humiliation at Brentford, United lacked the pace and enthusiasm that Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, and Anthony Elanga provided.
Sancho scored United’s first goal, and Rashford increased their advantage, confirming Ten Hag’s decision to fire Ronaldo and prompting new discussion about his future.
Ronaldo was uneasy going into the new season after skipping United’s preseason tour for “family reasons” amid claims he had informed the team he wanted to quit.
Ronaldo decided to leave United after the club failed to qualify for the Champions League this year, leaving Ten Hag with a lot of trouble just weeks after he joined from Ajax.
But the former Real Madrid and Juventus striker is in a bind since United insists that Ronaldo is not for sale.
The 37-year-old, who ended up becoming United’s best scorer last season, didn’t exactly give the impression that he was dedicated to the Ten Hag administration when he left Old Trafford before the game was over after being taken out during a preseason friendly against Rayo Vallecano.
A possible breach between the five-time Ballon d’Or winner and his manager was further evidenced by a clumsy replacement performance in the second half of the Brighton defeat.
Ronaldo played the entire 90 minutes of United’s defeat to Brentford, but his lack of offensive threat contributed to one of the worst outcomes in the club’s recent history.
difficult choices
Ten Hag was therefore faced with a difficult choice as he considered his squad for the vital match against Liverpool.
It would have been extremely stressful for Ten Hag to drop Ronaldo and then see United lose to their bitter rivals.
However, the Dutch manager refused to be intimidated by the circumstance and left out England’s Harry Maguire and Ronaldo, a risky move that paid off as United earned their first victory of the season and moved out of the relegation zone.
Ronaldo’s immediate future is assuredly relegated to the bench after United’s superb victory, therefore the striker and his agent Jorge Mendes may feel renewed pressure to push for a transfer.
In the latter stages of his career, it is difficult to see Ronaldo being able to adjust to Ten Hag’s high-tempo philosophy.
However, Ten Hag is convinced that Ronaldo will play a part in his plans, at least in public.
I believe he can. Throughout his entire career, he accomplished it under many managers, using various systems and approaches. Why can’t he perform as he usually has? It doesn’t matter how old he is, Ten Hag said following the Liverpool game.
We have a team, a way of playing, and a strategy for the game. You consider what strategy for the game is best. Today, those players were involved; but, Saturday might be different.
The Ten Hag period was defined by United’s resolute performance against Liverpool in Ronaldo’s absence.
new signature Ten Hag wants Ronaldo to embody the same spirit as Casemiro, who was brought in from Real Madrid.
Ten Hag remarked of Casemiro, “We were talking about leadership, today we had leadership on the pitch, he is one as well.
You need some since Ronaldo has it, and it serves as advice for young players who haven’t won any trophies.
When questioned about the future of Ronaldo and Maguire, Ten Hag responded, “I don’t need to mention Harry Maguire and Ronaldo, they are wonderful players and they will play a role in the future, the short (term) future as well.
Although it is always difficult to exclude people, I must make choices.
We’ll have to wait and see if that gesture of goodwill is sufficient to prevent Ten Hag’s United revolution from being derailed by the Ronaldo conundrum.
