Jurgen Klopp did not hold back when asked about Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Manchester United last September, but his comments haven't entirely matched up with how the forward's second spell at Old Trafford has played out.
"Am I happy that he is at United? No, I can't say that," Klopp told Sky Sports. When pressed for further comment, he admitted: "Yes, unfortunately [he's too good a player]. The Liverpool boss went on to add: "He was going to City and I thought 'Oh, that could be fun for United' and then, obviously, United stepped in and did it.
"It's all fine. It's a free world and they can do what they want." While that is exactly what the Red Devils did, some figures within the United hierarchy may be wishing they hadn't, as Ronaldo's return has gone south after a summer of demanding to leave.
Klopp's fear that the signing of Ronaldo would transform United's fortunes and see the Red Devils take their place back at the top of English football seemed justified at the time, particularly after the forward's fast start with a brace on his second debut.
However, what followed was in stark contrast to United becoming a superpower. All the pre-season talk of a title tilt was soon silenced after a dismal run of form under former boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, whose reign came to an end in the wake of a 4-1 defeat away at Watford.
Attentions soon turned to simply trying to qualify for the Champions League under new interim boss Ralf Rangnick, but Ronaldo failed to inspire his side to that feat either and United's season ended with a sixth-placed finish, scraping Europa League qualification on the final day of the season at the expense of West Ham.
The 2021/22 campaign eventually ended as United's worst of the Premier League era, prompting the appointment of Erik ten Hag who is now aiming to turn the tide on United's recent fortunes.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Was Ronaldo at least partly to blame for United's dismal season last term? Comment below
Klopp's comments are certainly eye-opening, as the self-confessed fear of a manager of his calibre really did end up being for little to no reason. Ronaldo's arrival did not inspire United to anything special, it in fact saw them drop from second-place in 2020/21 to sixth place last time out.
For context, Ronaldo's United finished an astonishing 34 points behind Klopp's Reds.
So much was expected of the former Real Madrid man and though his form in front of goal didn't exactly disappoint, the fact the debate surrounding whether Ronaldo's presence was a help or a hinderance to United raged on all season is enough evidence to suggest it was hardly a unanimous success.
Things have hardly picked up this term either. After a season of making his exit desires clear, Ronaldo is eight games into the new season across all competitions and has scored just once - a penalty against FC Sheriff Tiraspol on match-day two of the Europa League.
Hardly the return of someone who will strike fear into Liverpool hearts nowadays.
