Cristiano Ronaldo has been told by Gabby Agbonlahor to follow the example of his long-term adversary Lionel Messi to come to terms with his reduced role at Manchester United.
Ronaldo – an unused substitute during his side's dominant two-goal victory over Tottenham – was filmed walking off down the tunnel and subsequent reports claimed that he departed Old Trafford before his triumphant teammates returned to the dressing room after the match.
The Portuguese star has been widely criticised for his actions at the end of the encounter. United boss Erik ten Hag said of the incident immediately after the game on Amazon Prime: "He (Ronaldo) was there, I have seen him but I didn't speak. I will deal with that tomorrow not today."
Ronaldo has started just one of United's last eight Premier League matches and none of the six games they won during that period, although he did net the winner earlier this month against Everton after coming on as an early substitute for Anthony Martial.
Now aged 37, Ronaldo has to manage his declining status and significance within United's dressing room and he has now been encouraged to follow the example of Messi – with whom he has shared an intense rivalry on the pitch for over a decade – in order to handle his situation.
Now at Paris Saint-Germain, Messi is also having to come to terms with no longer being his side's most significant player and while he is two years younger and with greater prominence than Ronaldo, there are similarities between their declining status at the top of the sport.
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Agbonlahor explained on talkSPORT when asked if he thought United boss Ten Hag was handling the situation correctly: "I think he is yeah. I think Ronaldo needs to look at [the fact that] he's not performing in the game and that there are so many good players they have got available.
"They have [Anthony] Elanga, [Marcus] Rashford, who can be brought on as well. I've been watching a lot of PSG games and [Messi] gets brought off often. He doesn't have a strop, he walks off, shakes the manager's hand, and sits on the bench. I think just because you are this outstanding player, you can't have that feeling that 'I can't be brought off, I'm Ronaldo'".
Agbonlahor added: "If you're not performing, then there are players who can come on and take your place. You've got to just handle it better."
