Rio Ferdinand says he can understand why Cristiano Ronaldo left Old Trafford early in Manchester United ’s win over Tottenham on Wednesday night.
Ronaldo has caused a storm at United after Erik ten Hag revealed that Ronaldo refused to come off the substitutes’ bench during the 2-0 win. He has been disciplined by the club and will not play a part in their Premier League game against Chelsea on Saturday afternoon.
The vast majority of the reaction to the 37-year-old’s behaviour has been negative, with pundits slamming him for a lack of professionalism and respect for his manager. But former United defender Ferdinand, who played alongside Ronaldo during his first spell at the club, has given a different take.
Referring to the statement Ronaldo released after the incident, in which he said he’d always been a model of professionalism and blamed the “heat of the moment” for his reaction, Ferdinand mounted a defence of the striker, claiming he should be treated differently due to his status as one of the greatest players of all time.
“I wouldn’t have been happy, in Ronaldo’s statement he mentioned how he would’ve handled things differently,” Ferdinand said on BT Sport. “Emotions can sometimes take it out of your control as you're human.
“I’d have been in the queue to speak to him, asking why he did it and asking the question. There’s two ways to look at it, and I don’t condone it for one minute, but there’s always another side to the story.
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“I don’t think the communication has been as good as he wanted it to be. People say ‘you’re a player in the team’ but when you’re dealing with a player like Cristiano Ronaldo, like it or not, he’s Cristiano Ronaldo he’s one of the greatest footballers ever along with [Lionel] Messi. Sometimes they’re afforded a way of treatment a little bit different to everyone else.
“It was the same under Fergie – we had that communication [as to] how the minutes are going to look and I think for the first time in his life that’s not upheld by the manager or the club. He’s in a position where he doesn’t know where he’s at.
“I’m not saying he was right in that decision – and his decision says that as well – but at the same time, you can say for every other player it’s you’re one of the team but there are sometimes special players that things work differently for.
“Not only is he an iconic player, I think it’s important for the team to see he’s communicating and that he’s fresh in his mind and ready to play. He’s 37 years old, he probably needs that more than ever so he can perform to the best of his ability.”
Explaining his decision to drop Ronaldo from the squad which travels to Stamford Bridge on Saturday, Ten Hag said: "I am the manager, I am responsible for the culture here and I have to set standards and values and I have to control them. In the team, we have values and standards and I have to control that.”
