Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag speaks with Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo during a drinks break. (Reuters)Barring a major deadline day development, Cristiano Ronaldo is set to stay at Manchester United this season. This is irrespective of the superstar forward wanting Champions League football and his agent Jorge Mendes searching for a new club all summer. According to The Sun, Ronaldo has taken a dramatic transfer U-turn, starting to believe in Erik ten Hag’s project, with the club going on a transfer splurge and making high-profile signings like Casemiro and Antony.
Ronaldo’s ‘home return’ euphoria last season was short-lived, as United faltered on the pitch and missed out on Champions League football after finishing sixth in the Premier League. Ronaldo, who scored 24 goals in all competitions last term, has been wanting out since the start of the new season, skipping the pre-season, citing family reasons. United’s new manager Ten Hag was initially warm to the idea of keeping the 37-year-old at the club but of late, he is said to have changed his stance.
United would play against Leicester City on Thursday. At the pre-match press conference, Ten Hag was asked if Ronald still would be in his plan, now that the club has roped in Antony from Ajax. The manager’s response was monosyllabic: “Of course.” Ten Hag explained that the squad needed more quality players upfront.
Antony is a left-footed right winger, a rare commodity in football, which somewhat justifies his £84 million price tag. But he would rather challenge Jadon Sancho and Anthony Elanga for a starting eleven spot, while Ronaldo operates centrally. The latter, though, so far has started only one game this term, against Brentford, and made anodyne appearances off the bench against Brighton, Liverpool and Southampton. That he is still not match-fit was evident at St Mary’s last Saturday, when Southampton defender Mohammed Salisu outran him and made a successful challenge in a one-on-one situation. Ronaldo’s agent still hoped for a Napoli switch, with Victor Osimhen coming the other way. But Napoli reportedly slapped a £100 million price tag on the Nigerian centre-forward and that was that. On Wednesday, Ten Hag confirmed that there wouldn’t be any more incomings in this transfer window following the signings of Antony and goalkeeper Martin Dubravka.
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United have already spent north of £200 million in this window, bringing on six players – the club’s biggest transfer business since 2014.
As for Ronaldo, his boyhood club Sporting CP apparently remain the only available option at the moment, but the Portuguese club is unlikely to afford his £500,000-a-week salary.
Ten Hag eventually agreed to the veteran marksman leaving the club, but United owners, the Glazers, have reportedly blocked any move away. Ronaldo’s departure will surely have commercial consequences and as things stand, with about 36 hours left in the ongoing transfer window, he is set to stay at United.
Ronaldo is the team’s only out-and-out No. 9 but Ten Hag didn’t think twice to bench him, even in Anthony Martial’s absence. After missing the Southampton game, Martial would be out against Leicester as well due to an Achilles issue. But Ten Hag, yet again, is likely to go with the front three of Elanga, Marcus Rashford and Sancho. The new manager has brought in runners in the team, both on and off the ball.