Wayne Rooney finds it odd that Cristiano Ronaldo, a former teammate of his at Manchester United, has criticized him.
After Rooney cautioned the Portuguese star last week that he is turning into a “unwanted distraction” at Old Trafford, Ronaldo fired back in a shocking interview with TalkTV that was made public by The Sun.
When questioned about Rooney’s remarks, Ronaldo responded: “I don’t understand, you should ask this question to him. I don’t know why he criticised me so bad.”
He continued when asked if Rooney was jealous of him: “Probably, because he finished his career in his 30s. I’m still playing at a high level, I’m not going to say that I’m looking better than him, which is true. It’s hard to listen to that kind of criticism and negativity from people who played with you, for example Gary Neville as well.”
“People can have their own opinion but they don’t really know what’s going on inside the training ground at Carrington or even my life. They should listen to not only one point of view, they have to listen to my point of view as well. It’s easy to criticise but if you don’t know the whole story, it’s easy.”
“They are not my friends.”
“It’s easy to criticise, I don’t know if they have a job in television that they must criticise to be more famous. I really don’t understand it.”
“I think they take advantage of [my name] because they are not stupid.”
“I have to carry on my life with criticism. It’s hard when you see people who were in the dressing room with you criticise in that way. I’m not going to sleep badly because of the criticism but it’s not good to listen to that.”
After the criticism against him, it is believed that Rooney has made the decision to hold off on commenting against Ronaldo in the media over the controversial interview.
The England’s all-time leading goal scorer however said: “It is believed that Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are the two best players in the world.”
He, however, went further to say that the 37-year-old must acknowledge that he is in the latter stages of his career and that playing for a team the magnitude of Manchester United requires that he respect the situation and not expect to play in every minute of every game.
According to reports in the United Kingdom, Rooney has made it clear that he has no ill will toward Ronaldo despite the bashing from the Portuguese star.
What Did Cristiano Ronaldo Say About Rooney?
Wayne Rooney, a renowned player for United and England, received some bashing from Ronaldo.
The two produced a ton of work together during Ronaldo’s first season at Old Trafford, but they did battle on the international scene after Rooney was famously sent off at the 2006 World Cup, which resulted in a clip showing Ronaldo winking after chatting with the referee.
Rooney has berated Ronaldo and urged the team to fire him throughout the player’s second term at United.
“I don’t know why he criticises me so badly,” Ronaldo said, “…probably because he finished his career and I’m still playing at high level.”
Per the Interview, Ronaldo then chuckles and added: “I’m not going to say that I’m looking better than him. Which is true . . . ”’
Ronaldo thinks Sir Alex Ferguson is aware of the issues at Old Trafford as United has declined since the veteran coach left the squad in 2013, following their most recent Premier League title.
What Did Wayne Rooney Said Against Ronaldo?
Ronaldo had no choice but to attack Rooney after the retired England international claimed that Ronaldo’s deeds of petulance this season were inappropriate and that the Portuguese star should be allowed to leave Old Trafford.
Recall that Ronaldo stormed down the tunnel prior to the conclusion of United’s 2-0 victory over Tottenham in October, which prompted manager Erik ten Hag to bench him for one match.
When asked if Ronaldo made Manchester United better, Rooney responded to talkSPORT: “No, I don’t think so. Him and Messi are arguably the two best players of all time and you can go either way with that, whatever way you decide.
“But I just think the things he has done from the start of the season; it is not acceptable for Manchester United. I’ve seen Roy Keane defending him. Roy wouldn’t accept that. Roy wouldn’t accept that at all. It is a distraction which Manchester United don’t need at the minute, when they are trying to rebuild.
“For Cristiano, just get your head down and work and be ready to play when the manager needs you. If he does that, he will be an asset. If he doesn’t, it will become an unwanted distraction.”
Prior to the World Cup, Ronaldo has now joined the Portugal team. In the meantime, United’s attorneys are continuing to research the comments Ronaldo has made in an attempt to arrive at an official reaction.
