Ronaldo on Man Utd's Erik ten Hag: "I have no respect for him"

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Superstar footballer Cristiano Ronaldo publicly raged at his Manchester United coach and club in an interview with English media personality Piers Morgan. 

The Portuguese will be heading his fifth, and most probably his last World Cup tournament. In a 90-minute interview with Piers Morgan, Ronaldo tore down the club for the way they had been treating him since returning to the Premier League last year. 

Ronaldo told Morgan he believes the club is trying to "force him out." 

“Yes,” Ronaldo said. “Not only the coach but another two or three guys there around the club.”

Morgan followed up: “At the senior executive level?”

“Yes. I felt betrayed," Ronaldo said. 

Morgan asked Ronaldo if Manchester was trying to get rid of him, to which he responded, “Honestly, I shouldn’t say that, I don’t know...Listen, I don’t care. People should listen to the truth...Yes I feel betrayed. And I felt some people don’t want me here. Not only this year but last year too."

Ronaldo went on to criticize Erik ten Hag, the club's manager, who suspended Ronaldo from the first team after his refusal to come as a late substitute against Tottenham. 

The footballer said: “I don’t have respect for him because he doesn’t show respect for me. If you don’t have respect for me, I’m never gonna have respect for you.”

In 2021, Ronaldo returned to Manchester; to his surprise, if not shock, he saw almost no improvements at the club in terms of facilities, nutrition, and technology: “The progress was zero,” he said. “Since Sir Alex [Furguson] left (2013), I saw no evolution in the club. Nothing had changed.”

“I want the best for the club. This is why I come to Manchester United.

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“But you have some things inside that don’t help (us) reach the top level as (Manchester) City, Liverpool and even now Arsenal … a club with this dimension should be top of the tree in my opinion and they are not, unfortunately.”

He said: “Nothing changes. Not only the jacuzzi, the pool, even the gym. Even some points of technology, the kitchen, the chefs - who I appreciate, lovely people! They stop in time which surprised me a lot.

“I thought I would see different things, technology, infrastructure. Unfortunately, we see many things I’m used to seeing when I’m 21, 22, 23. It surprised me a lot.”

"This guy is not even a coach!"

With current manager Erik ten Hag, Ronaldo has lost support, alongside disciplinary issues, scoring only once in 10 league appearances this season. He wanted to leave the club after the last season, but failed to gather much interest among European elites given his age and hefty wage demands. 

Furthermore, he praised former teammate Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the manager at Old Trafford when he returned, only to be fired weeks later. In contrast, he criticized interim manager Ralf Rangnick, one of the most respected executives in football, saying: “For example, an interesting point is how a club like Manchester United sacked Ole (Gunnar Solskjaer), they bring in a sporting director Ralf Rangnick which is something nobody understands. This guy is not even a coach! A big club like Manchester United bringing in a sporting director surprised not only me but all the world.

“If you’re not even a coach, how are you going to be the boss of Manchester United? I’d never even heard of him.

"I don’t know why he criticizes me so badly...probably because he finished his career and I’m still playing at a high level. I’m not going to say that I’m looking better than him. Which is true..."

After this interview, Ronaldo's outing from the club in January seems inevitable.