Man Utd hero Roy Keane blames Ten Hag for Cristiano Ronaldo strop ahead of Chelsea clash

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Manchester United legend Roy Keane has questioned Erik ten Hag’s decision to call on Cristiano Ronaldo with mere minutes to play against Tottenham on Wednesday. The Portuguese refused to come on and stormed down the tunnel, prompting his boss to drop him from the squad to face Chelsea.

Marcus Rashford was selected to play through the middle against Spurs with Ronaldo, not for the first time, forced to watch on from the bench. Fred and Bruno Fernandes put the hosts out of sight by the time Ten Hag attempted to bring the 37-year-old on with a few minutes of the game left to play. 

But the five-time Ballon d’Or winner supposedly refused and trotted off down the tunnel before the final whistle. As the rift between player and manager rages on, Keane has weighed in with a sympathetic view towards Ronaldo. 

“This game’s full of bluffers, [Ronaldo] is not one of them,” he told Sky Sports before United’s clash with Chelsea on Saturday. “He loves the club, he needs to play, he wants to play, people saying he’s not the player he was 10 years ago, of course not but he was still leading goalscorer last season.

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Roy Keane has defended the actions of Man Utd star Cristiano Ronaldo (Image: Twitter @FootballDaily)

“He went to Man United, to a bad Manchester United team, really bad, and he was still the leading goalscorer. The last few weeks, he’s been frustrated. The Man City game, the Everton game when he came on as sub and scored, he came off against Newcastle, then [Ten Hag] wants to bring him on for a few minutes.

“I think they asked the manager in the press conference, did Ronaldo refuse to go on? But they should’ve asked him, when were you going to put him on? Late in the game, two or three minutes to go? Not too sure it’s a clever move.”

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Having sensationally returned to Old Trafford last summer, Ronaldo notched 24 goals in all competitions but United struggled as a collective, dismissing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick. With no Champions League football in 2022/23, Ronaldo supposedly asked to leave during the summer but a number of top European clubs distanced themselves from a move. 

Reports indicate that the former Real Madrid, Juventus and Sporting Lisbon star has failed to gel with Ten Hag and his opportunities have taken a hit this term. It is now thought that the Red Devils could sanction a transfer exit in January, six months before the end of Ronaldo’s two-year contract.

Erik ten Hag and Cristiano Ronaldo are thought to have a strained relationship at Man Utd (Image: GETTY)

Keane’s former team-mate, Gary Neville, came down harder on the Portuguese this weekend. “I don’t think [Ten Hag] was left with any other option, that’s the second time Cristiano Ronaldo has left Old Trafford in his car before his team have got in the changing room,” he told Sky Sports.

“I have to say, as someone in the dressing room, it’s something that’s unacceptable. When you look at whether Cristiano should be selected, which is Cristiano Ronaldo’s biggest problem at the moment – that he isn’t playing – Manchester United are better without him and Erik ten Hag knows that.”