TIt burned, but it arrived. This Monday, on the television program ‘Football Uncensored‘, Piers Morgan, popular British journalist and close friend of Cristiano Ronaldo, shared the Portuguese international’s (synthetic) reaction to the fierce attack he received from Erik ten Hag, his former coach, at Manchester United, over the last few weeks.
“I asked Cristiano about it, and he told me that he didn’t think it was worth talking about Ten Hag, it was his only observation. He said ‘Don’t bother, it’s not worth it'”, he said, between laughs, before defending ‘tooth and nail’ what the now Al Nassr striker did, in his second spell at Old Trafford, between August 2021 and November 2022.
“In the last season before leaving Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo scored 18 goals in the Premier League and six in the Champions League. How much would Manchester United love to have a striker with that record, right now? I think Ronaldo could have given United another two or three years”, he shot.
“He could have scored a lot of goals for them, being an excellent, excellent return, if he had the right coach with him, but he didn’t. There was a guy who disrespected him, who trained him like shit, a bit like the Portuguese coach (Jorge Jesus) is trying to do now. These guys want to make a name for themselves at Ronaldo’s expense”, he concluded.
“Cristiano Ronaldo was shocked by Manchester United”
Piers Morgan challenged Manchester United ‘living legend’ Nicky Butt to comment on Erik ten Hag’s words about Cristiano Ronaldo, and he reflected: “I think it was a mistake to bring him back, to be honest with you. He left that club like a god, and I think he’s still a god there, but when he came back, I don’t think he was prepared for what the club was and what it has become.”
“Don’t forget that when he was there, Sir Alex Ferguson was there, who was like a second father to him. He had people around him like (Roy) Keane, (Paul) Scholes, (Ryan) Giggs, (Gary) Neville… All those players who looked after him while he was growing up. When he came back, it was a completely different club, and I think he was shocked by what he came back to”, he said.
“It’s a bit sad, because he’s such an iconic figure at that club. He left leaving a bit of a bitter taste in my mouth, but I have no idea why Ten Hag is after him now. I really don’t know. Of course he’s not going to win this with the Manchester United fans, it’s ridiculous,” he added.
“Nicky Butt: I have nothing against Ten Hag. I always thought he didn’t suit Manchester United. I think the decisions around the coaches that come in are… For me, the people who are in charge of that club don’t know what that club is, they don’t know what it takes to be a Manchester United player”, he added.
“Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t run, whether in possession or without possession of the ball, because he wasn’t preparing”
Cristiano Ronaldo’s ‘response’ comes after two ‘bombastic’ interviews given by Erik ten Hag, the first of which to the North American portal The Athleticin which he said: “He disappointed the team and disappointed me, because we had made plans with him. I traveled to Portugal to talk to him about what I wanted, before coming to Manchester United”.
“I confronted him with this. Many times, I told him ‘Ronnie, everyone wants to work to put you in the right position, but if you can’t put yourself in the penalty area, you can’t score’. He wasn’t capable of doing this. It’s a wrong idea to assume that I wanted him to press, that he was exhausted…”, he pointed out.
“He couldn’t do it. He didn’t run, whether in possession or without the ball. The reason was that he wasn’t preparing. All top teams have to commit to their best player, but the best player has to work for the team”, he added, before delve deeper, on the Dutch television station ESPN.
“He belongs to the best players in history, but the reality is that, in the last seven or eight years, he hasn’t been able to perform at that level. From his time at Juventus onwards, it’s over (…). This is also Real Madrid’s great merit, they understand when a player’s level starts to drop”, he concluded.
