Cristiano Ronaldo threw a jab at Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag for his aggressive attitude since he took over the club in the 2022–23 season.
The Portuguese icon revealed his opinion about the Dutch manager during an interview with Rio Ferdinand that will be released on the Rio Ferdinand Present Podcast.
The player said, “‘As I told you, Manchester, they need to rebuild everything, in my opinion. The coach says they cannot compete to win the League and Champions League.”
“As a Manchester United coach, you cannot say that you’re not going to fight to win the League or Champions League.”
“You have to be mentally saying, Listen, maybe we don’t have that potential, but I cannot say that. We’re going to try. You have to try.”
Furthermore, Cristiano Ronaldo gave a piece of advice to the Manchester United manager, Erik Ten Hag. The 39-year-old told him to soften his aggressive attitude and listen to his assistant, Ruud Van Nistelrooy.
He said, “If Ten Hag listens to Ruud, maybe he can help himself,” he explained. “I think it can help a lot because he knows the club, and the club should listen to the guys who were there.”
He continued, “You or Roy Keane or Paul Scholes or Gary Neville, whatever, Sir Alex Ferguson. You cannot rebuild a club without knowledge. Not guys who work in offices. They understand.”
“The people who understand football, it was 99 percent the people who were there in the dressing room. They know how to deal with the players. It’s the people who understand these things.”
Cristiano Ronaldo’s stint at Manchester United
The Al Nassr star had two spells at Manchester United. He scored a total of 145 goals in 326 appearances. Ronaldo won nine trophies at the club, which included his first Champions League.
The player’s second spell at the club didn’t go as expected in the 2022–23 season. Ronaldo accused the former Ajax manager of disrespecting him.
In his second spell, Ronaldo had a mind-blowing interview with Piers Morgan, where he revealed everything that happened behind the scenes.
He attacked the Manchester United boss during the interview and also called out the Glazers family for not having the interest of the club at heart.
Since the former Ajax manager took over from Ralf Ragnick, Manchester United have finished in third place and eighth place on the Premier League table, in two successive seasons.
In the 2022–23 season, Manchester United won the Carabao Cup, defeating Newcastle 2-0 in the final. Also, the Red Devils won the FA Cup against Manchester City.
In the 2023-24 season, the Red Devils finished the bottom of the Champions League Group A.
Will Manchester United succeed under Erik Ten Hag this season?
Erik Ten Hag is currently finding it difficult to win matches at Manchester United, but he is likely to succeed with the right players on the pitch.
Players like Leny Yoro, Rasmus Hojlund, and Luke Shaw haven’t played a single game for the Red Devils.
They are expected to make Manchester United a team that will be difficult to defeat.
What do you think about Cristiano Ronaldo’s opinion about Erik Ten Hag? Air your views in the comments section.
