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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Callum Vurley

Cristiano Ronaldo defends son amid Nike vs Adidas criticism on Instagram

Cristiano Ronaldo has defended his eldest son on social media after he was criticised for his choice of clothes.

Ronaldo Jr had been targeted by trolls after Maria Dolores, Cristiano's mother, posted a picture of the two which has received over 110,000 likes. However, many noticed that the youngster was donning clothes made by both Nike and Adidas.

The Manchester United superstar has a huge sponsorship deal with Nike and many had pointed out that his son was wearing a mixture of the brands. The picture showed Ronaldo Jr sporting a Nike hoodie and a pair of Adidas socks.

But the Red Devils frontman has rushed to the defence of his son in the comment section of the Instagram post. He left a comment of his own hitting back at the critics, saying: "He wears what he wants. Not what you want."

Ronaldo has long been tied to the Nike brand having signed a sponsorship deal with the clothing brand in 2003. That was all the way back when the forward first signed for United from Sporting Lisbon.

Since then, the Portuguese star's brand has skyrocketed along with his personal success on the pitch, making him one of the recognised athletes in the world. The deal is considered a lifetime agreement which has a reported worth of over £780million.

It means that the 37-year-old exclusively wears clothes and gear from Nike, which includes football boots, shirts and sweatshirts. However, this coincides at Old Trafford where they have their kits made by Adidas.

United signed a whopping £750m deal with Adidas back in 2015 - the largest of its kind in the world. That agreement will last until 2025.

The Red Devils are back in action this weekend in the Premier League as they prepare to take on Everton in today's early kick-off. Ronaldo could return to the line-up after recovering from a bout of illness that kept him out of the 1-1 draw with Leicester last week.

Ralf Rangnick will be hoping to take advantage of the disarray under Frank Lampard at Goodison Park with United desperate to finish in the top four this season. They sit seventh in the table at the moment but are just three points behind fourth-placed Tottenham.

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