Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly left Old Trafford before the final whistle of Manchester United's 2-0 win against Tottenham - and in doing so, he has risked the wrath of former manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
The Portugal international, 37, hit the headlines after storming down the tunnel at Old Trafford in the 89th minute. He was an unused substitute for the Premier League fixture, which saw Manchester United put in a stunning performance to beat Antonio Conte's side.
Ronaldo has been condemned for his actions, but what does his former manager Ferguson think? The iconic boss hasn't commented on the incident, but it's fair to presume he wouldn't have been impressed after previously criticising players for acting bigger than the club.
Writing in his 2013 autobiography, Ferguson recalled the time when he accidentally caught David Beckham in the face after kicking a boot in a tirade at his players after a loss to Arsenal in February 2003. "The next day the story was in the press," wrote Ferguson.
"He was photographed in public with an Alice band to highlight the damage. I told the board David had to go. The minute a Man Utd player thought he was bigger than the manager, he had to go. David thought he was bigger than Alex Ferguson. You cannot have a player taking over the dressing room. That was the death knell for him."
Ronaldo has been accused by Danny Mills of acting like he's bigger than United. Mills told Sky Sports News: "It’s an absolute disgrace, I think it’s incredibly disrespectful to the team, to the manager, to the fans... He clearly thinks he’s bigger than the football club."
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Others, meanwhile, have defended Ronaldo. "The way Ten Hag seems to take delight in humiliating Cristiano is pathetic," tweeted Piers Morgan on Thursday morning. "Sticking the world’s greatest ever footballer on the bench, making him repeatedly warm up, then not even use him as a sub, is just staggeringly disrespectful to United’s top scorer last season."
According to The Athletic, Ronaldo left the building before the full-time of Wednesday evening's game and did not head to the dressing room. It's believed his exit didn't make an impact on his team-mates, as United's stars celebrated their triumph.
An unimpressed Ten Hag said he would "deal with" Ronaldo on Thursday. As promised, the forward was pictured arriving at United's Carrington training ground for showdown talks with his manager. It's unclear at this stage how those discussions progressed.
United are now just one point behind Chelsea in fourth. They could also move to within a point of Tottenham in third if they win their game in hand. In the Europa League, United need just a point from their last two group games to progress the next round.
It's not the first time Ronaldo has left Old Trafford before the end of a game. In August, he was filmed outside the ground after leaving during a pre-season friendly against Rayo Vallecano. The Portuguese star was taken off at half-time in that match.
"I certainly don’t condone this," said Ten Hag after the Rayo Vallecano fiasco. "This is unacceptable, for everyone. We are a team and you have to stay until the end."
