Janice R. Andrews
Erik ten Hag, the boss of Manchester United, has sharply reacted to Cristiano Ronaldo’s recent comments about the club’s goals. Dutchman said that the Red Devils were not ready to win the Premier League. Ronaldo, who now plays for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, called him out on it.
Ten Hag had said that Manchester United is still building and isn’t ready to seriously compete for big prizes like the Premier League or the Champions League. This is when Ronaldo spoke out. “You cannot say that you’re not going to fight to win the league or the Champions League,” the Portuguese star, who left United on bad terms in 2022, said in response.
Fans were happy when Ronaldo came back to Manchester United in 2021 after having a great career at Real Madrid and Juventus. But problems between the star and Ten Hag made their relationship worse, and Ronaldo ended up leaving to play for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League. When he left, Ronaldo didn’t hold back from talking about how upset he was with his old club and its leaders.
Erik ten Hag’s Answer
Ten Hag responded to Ronaldo’s comments in a rude way before Manchester United’s game against Southampton. He agreed with Ronaldo that he had a right to his view, but he made it clear that they were not close. “No, he did say that if you read the whole thing again.” He has the right to say what he thinks. It’s fine. Ten Hag told BBC, “He is in Saudi Arabia, which is a long way from Manchester.”
After a bad start to the 2024–25 Premier League season, the Dutch boss is under more and more pressure. Manchester United has already lost two of their first three games. One of those losses was a tough 3-0 loss at home to Liverpool. The club hasn’t won the Premier League since 2013 and keeps falling behind Manchester City and Liverpool in the league table.
Calls for Change at United
Dwight Yorke, a former Manchester United player, says the club should think about replacing Ten Hag with Zinedine Zidane because of their current problems. Yorke thinks that Zidane’s background could help the team win by attracting top players. Ten Hag has won two cups with the team, but their Premier League play is still all over the place, which makes people question his long-term future at Old Trafford.
