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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Tom Victor

Sir Alex Ferguson's response to Cristiano Ronaldo's furious substitution reaction

Manchester United's Premier League win at Brentford helped them reignite their battle for a top-four spot, but Cristiano Ronaldo 's reaction to being substituted dominated the discussion after the victory.

Ronaldo was withdrawn 20 minutes from time, having drawn a blank in front of goal for the second successive game, and was visibly frustrated as he took his place on the bench.

It was far from the first time the veteran has reacted in this way to being taken off, with plenty of examples from his time at Juventus and Real Madrid as well as his first United spell.

His reactions haven't always been received badly, though, with former United boss Sir Alex Ferguson making his feelings known regarding one of the more notable strops.

What did you make of Ronaldo's reaction at Brentford? Have your say in the comments section

Ronaldo had words with Ralf Rangnick after his substitution (Dave Shopland/REX/Shutterstock)

Towards the end of Ronaldo's first Old Trafford spell, the forward was withdrawn less than an hour into the Manchester Derby.

He had scored United's opener, beating Manchester City goalkeeper Shay Given with a deflected free-kick before Carlos Tevez secured a 2-0 victory, but was protected by Ferguson amid a busy May schedule.

With important Premier League games on the horizon, as well as the Champions League final against Barcelona, Ronaldo was given a rest by the manager.

The player didn't take too kindly to the decision, showing his frustration as he left the field, but Ferguson was notably calm about the situation.

"It is great that he wanted to play on. It is fabulous. But I have to look at the big picture," the boss explained at the time.

"He produced an incredible performance against Arsenal on Tuesday. He ran his socks off. Now I have Wednesday and Saturday to look after. There is no problem."

The Arsenal game in question was the second leg of the Champions League semi-final, in which Ronaldo scored twice in a 3-1 away win, and Ferguson recognised the player's importance for the weeks ahead.

Ronaldo won the Premier League with United in 2009 (Action Images via Reuters)

"He [Ronaldo] said 'Why me, why did you take me off?'," Manchester United interim manager Rangnick revealed after the Brentford game.

"I said I had to take the decision for the team, for the club. Maybe in a few years when he is a coach he will understand," Rangnick said.

"That is normal - a striker wants to score - but he has come back from a little injury and it was important to remember we have got another game coming up.

"Also after what happened at Villa Park, we had to defend the lead this time and it was important that we went back to a back five and while we didn't keep the clean sheet it was important to make sure nothing else happened."

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