Manchester United stars are becoming fed up with Cristiano Ronaldo ’s attempts to leave the club.
Ronaldo is determined to depart the Red Devils this summer after just one season back at Old Trafford following his high-profile return from Juventus last summer after 12 years away. He has been attempting to force through an exit for two months.
The Portuguese superstar did not report to the club's pre-season tour of Asia due to 'family reasons' and only made his first appearance under new boss Erik ten Hag as the Red Devils were held to a 1-1 draw by Rayo Vallecano in a friendly at Old Trafford a week before the season started.
Ronaldo was subsequently deemed not to be fit enough to start in Sunday’s Premier League opening day defeat against Brighton, although he did enter proceedings in the second half as a substitute – where he was unable to find the net.
During his first appearance under Ten Hag against Rayo, Ronaldo was engaged in an animated conversation with the coach on the sidelines. Having subsequently been taken off at the break, Ronaldo was then pictured leaving Old Trafford before the end of the game which drew the wrath of the United boss – who described the behaviour as “unacceptable”.
Ten Hag bluntly said: "Definitely not (acceptable). I certainly don't condone this. This is unacceptable. For everyone. We are a team and you have to stay until the end."
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It has now been detailed how a growing number of United players are now tired of Ronaldo’s antics with a growing consensus preferring him to leave the club this summer. That is outlined by a report in The Sun, who say the mood in the dressing room has shifted.
Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes is pushing hard for the player to leave the club this month and is said to have an offer on the table from an unnamed club. United however are not shifting – publicly at least – from their stance that the 37-year-old is not for sale.
That has led to somewhat of a standoff between the two parties but the reality is that it has already impacted United’s season, with Ten Hag forced to play Christian Eriksen as a ‘false nine’ in the loss against Brighton due to Anthony Martial’s absence and Ronaldo’s lack of match fitness.
Ten Hag was tight-lipped when asked to shed light on United's plans to bolster their forward line in the final three weeks of summer transfer window. "I don't go into names because I think, in this pre-season, 250 players are involved or linked to Man United," the former Ajax manager told reporters post-match. "We have two strikers, maybe a third one with [Marcus] Rashford as well, you could see him as a striker.
"He had a really good pre-season on the left side and also today had two really good chances, coming in from the left side, so I think it was the right decision to do it like this. But we didn't have the typical nine. He was not available today."
