"Painfully obvious who the real problem was/is" - Piers Morgan reiterates Cristiano Ronaldo claim after another Manchester United defeat
British broadcaster Piers Morgan has yet again hit out at Manchester United for their less-than-amicable split with Cristiano Ronaldo last November. The Englishman insists the problem lies not with the Portuguese international but with the Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag.
United suffered a 1-0 loss to Crystal Palace at Old Trafford in the Premier League today (30 September), just a few days after their 3-0 win over the same side in the third round of the Carabao Cup.
Ten Hag's men walked away with no points from the fixture after Joachim Andersen got on the scoresheet for the Eagles. Following the defeat, Morgan took to social media to lambast the Manchester United boss for his shortfalls this evening.
The Englishman, who is known for being a good ally of Cristiano Ronaldo, wrote on X (formerly Twitter):
"REMINDER: One of these men was driven out of United because he was deemed ‘the problem’ at the club. Painfully obvious who the real problem was/is.. (Clue: it wasn’t @Cristiano)."
In another tweet, he posted a picture with the former Real Madrid superstar with their thumbs up and a caption taunting Ten Hag that read:
"Hi Erik."
Cristiano Ronaldo had a massive fallout with Manchester United last season after getting into a row with Ten Hag. The Portuguese forward then made matters worse after his public and explosive rant in an interview with Piers Morgan about issues regarding the club's hierarchy, the management, and former teammates Gary Neville and Roy Keane.
He currently plays at Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr.
"He does not accept" - Gary Neville makes interesting 'main man' claim as he discusses Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Manchester United
Cristiano Ronaldo's second stint at Old Trafford certainly did not go according to plan. During his time at the club, Gary Neville had sent some criticism his way. The Englishman has now explained why he called out the Portuguese international.
He also claimed that Cristiano Ronaldo cannot resist being the star of the show, which may have been a factor in his break-up with Manchester United. Neville said in an interview with Marca (as quoted by The Mirror):
"I think he did very well in terms of goals. He has a character and a personality in which he does not accept not being the main man. I criticised him because my opinion is that, when you are a leader in the dressing room and you are a leader in world football, there are different ways of teaching, different ways of mentoring and different ways of coaching the younger players on the team who are not at your level."
Neville added:
"I think Cristiano should have modified and adapted his leadership style at United to the players in the locker room who needed mentoring, training and levelling up."
The former Manchester United defender further stated:
"Cristiano got frustrated with them, he got angry with them and that was visible sometimes during the games and, in the end, it became a kind of confrontation."
Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Old Trafford saw him score 24 goals and provide three assists in 39 appearances across all competitions for Manchester United during the 2021-22 campaign.