Cristiano Ronaldo has reportedly injured his knee while celebrating a goal during a Premier League match between Manchester United and Arsenal on Thursday, December 2, 2021.
According to a report by the Sun, the 36-year-old Portuguese football icon sustained the knee injury while carrying out his trademark ‘Siu’ celebration.
Recall that Cristiano Ronaldo started the Premier League game against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium which happened to be the last game of the club’s caretaker coach, Micheal Carrick.
The Portuguese star scored his first goal in the 3-2 win over Arsenal in the 52nd minute. In the 70th minute, the 5-time Ballon d’Or winner scored from the spot to seal the victory. The goal was Ronaldo’s 801st career goal.
Very happy to become the first football player to score more than 800 official goals. What an amazing and unforgettable run this is becoming… Thank you to all my supporters for always standing by my side. 801 and still counting!🙏🏽👊🏽 pic.twitter.com/1UqngjqE8V
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) December 3, 2021
It was after he scored the late goal that he decided to display his trademark celebration to the extent of sustaining a knee injury. However, he was able to continue with the match until he was substituted in the 88th minute of the game.
Even though the United Kingdom publication claimed that the Portuguese football star sustained a knee injury while celebrating his 70th-minute goal, Cristiano Ronaldo was seen running into the tunnel after he was substituted.
As it stands, if the report is anything to go by, Ronaldo would not be available for Manchester United’s league game against Crystal Palace on Sunday.
This could be a big blow to coach Ralf Rangnick who is expected to use the Crystal Palace game to commence his interim coaching job at Old Trafford.
He would have hoped to have every player fit for his first game in charge of Manchester United especially when it is scheduled to be played at Old Trafford.
It could also be a blessing in disguise for the likes of Anthony Martial and Edison Cavani who have been enjoying little or no game time due to the return of Ronaldo to Old Trafford in August.
Asides from that, Ronaldo would not be a happy man to have an injury setback at this point of the season especially now that Rangnick has started his reign.
Recall that when Rangnick was appointed the interim coach of Manchester United earlier in the month, the speculation was that he might sideline Ronaldo because the 36-year-old Portuguese star might not be able to play his so-called high-pressing style of football.
But in his first press conference as the manager of the club, the German tactician made it clear that it is the available players that would determine the type of style that the coach might adopt.
Give and take, the Sunday game against Crystal Palace would have been a good avenue to see a sample of what the coach has in stock for the Premier League side.
At the time of publishing this report, Manchester United were sitting on the 7th spot on the league table with 21 points in 14 games, four points below 4th placed West Ham United. They could climb as high as the 5th spot if they defeat Crystal Palace on Sunday and 6th placed Tottenham Hotspur and 5th placed Arsenal fail to win their weekend games.
🔴 𝑽𝑰𝑽𝑨 𝑹𝑶𝑵𝑨𝑳𝑫𝑶 🔴#MUFC | @Cristiano pic.twitter.com/lfTpv4RE9L
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 3, 2021
