26 April 2024 , 20:36
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Cristiano Ronaldo's extraordinary demands while at Manchester United under interim manager Ralf Rangnick have been revealed.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner returned to Old Trafford in the summer of 2021 after leaving Italian giants Juventus and his arrival was met with huge excitement from the United faithful. At the time, Red Devils legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was at the helm, but the Norwegian was sacked from his post as manager less than four months later.
Solskjaer was eventually replaced by Rangnick, who Ronaldo failed to see eye to eye with. Demands made by the ex-Real Madrid icon have since come to light which exposes how the player and manager saw their relationship suffer a total breakdown.
German outlet BILD has reported that Ronaldo told Rangnick that he would play four out of five games. However, the Portugal captain demanded that the one game he misses he would watch from home, rather than travel with the rest of his team-mates and watch in attendance.
The former Los Blancos ace outlasted Rangnick at United, remaining at the club until November of 2022 before a fall-out with the next manager, Erik ten Hag made his place at Old Trafford untenable. His dynamic with Ten Hag suffered irreparable damage after an explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
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In that interview, Ronaldo took aim at just about everyone in the club, including Rangnick. United's former No. 7 questioned the appointment of the Austrian as both a sporting director, a role Rangnick was expected to take on after his stint as interim coach.
"I don't know what's going on, but since Sir Alex Ferguson left, I saw no evolution in the club, the progress was zero," Ronaldo explained.
HAVE YOUR SAY!Did Ronaldo tarnish his United legacy? Comment below
Cristiano Ronaldo's interview with Piers Morgan sent shockwaves through Man United (@PiersUncensored/Twitter)"For example, we have an interesting point that, how the club as Manchester United after they sack Ole, they bring in sports director Rangnick, which is something that nobody understands.'
"This guy is not even a coach. A bigger club like Manchester United bringing in a sports director - it surprised not only me but all the world, you know? Of course, in my opinion. We have to be honest: if you're not even a coach, how are you going to be the boss of Manchester United? It's something that I should say that Manchester is not followed."
Ever the consistent goalscorer, Ronaldo's return under Rangnick was still impressive. 12 goals in 22 appearances under the former Red Bull Leipzig boss was enough for some fans to suggest the forward was being unfairly targeted by sections of the media.
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