Cristiano Ronaldo’s sister has fuelled speculation that the Manchester United forward’s absence from Ralf Rangnick’s squad for the derby fixture against Manchester City was not injury related.
Ronaldo’s sister Katia Aveiro liked a post on Instagram that suggested that Ronaldo was neither injured nor ill, and had been left out of the squad for “tactical reasons”.
In the absence of their Portuguese striker, Manchester United were well beaten 4-1 by their cross-city rivals to lose ground on Arsenal in the race for the Champions League places.
Rangnick had said Ronaldo was struggling with a hip flexor issue.
“I have to believe my medical department,” Rangnick explained of the 37-year-old’s omission.
“Our doctor came to see me Friday morning before training and said Cristiano could not train because of some problems with his hip flexor and the same Saturday.”
Ronaldo’s absence was questioned by former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane before kick-off, who suggested that the injury didn’t “add up”.
Rangnick was also without Luke Shaw and Raphael Varane, with the defenders each testing positive for Covid.
