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Featured Image Credit: Piers Morgan Uncensored & Cristiano Ronaldo
Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United, Premier League, Sir Alex Ferguson
Josh Lawless
Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United, Premier League, Sir Alex Ferguson
Cristiano Ronaldo claims "nothing has changed" since he left Manchester United in 2009 as he slammed the club for their dated facilities in an explosive interview.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner sat down with Piers Morgan for a 90-minute chat whereby he ripped into a slew of figures associated with United.
Believing he has been betrayed and is being forced out, Ronaldo revealed he does not "have respect" for United manager Erik ten Hag and also claimed he "had never heard" of Ralf Rangnick prior to him becoming interim boss.
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Former teammate Wayne Rooney also received a little dig after recent criticism of Ronaldo.
Ronaldo pulled no punches in the interview and laid into United for not moving with the times. The 37-year-old is meticulous in his preparation and says things have not advanced since his first spell.
"Nothing changed since I left," he said on Piers Morgan Uncensored.
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"The pool, the jacuzzi, even the gym, even some technology. Even the chefs who I appreciate, lovely people".
"I thought I would see new technology, infrastructure. I saw things I saw when I was 20!".
Ronaldo left back in 2009, sealing a then-world-record £80 million switch to Real Madrid, where he became the club's record goalscorer and won four Champions Leagues.
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He returned to United in 2021 after three seasons in Italy with Juventus and scored 24 times in all competitions as the Red Devils finished sixth with a goal difference of zero and their worst points tally of the Premier League era.
He admits that the club are not in the "top level" and sit behind Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal.
Ronaldo continued: "The progress was zero. Since Sir Alex left, I saw no evolution in the club. Nothing had changed.
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“I think the fans should know the truth. I want the best for the club. This is why I come to Manchester United.
“But you have some things inside that don’t help (us) reach the top level as 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.”
Under Ten Hag, Ronaldo has largely featured as a substitute and was banished from the first-team after refusing to come off the bench against Spurs.
The Portuguese superstar left the stadium before the final whistle was blown in the 2-0 win.
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In another shocking tidbit from the interview, Ronaldo accused the club of "showing a lack of empathy" in "the most difficult period of my life" when his three-month old daughter was hospitalised and says they doubted his reasons for not being able to return for pre-season.
The reason given for his absence for the win over Fulham was that he was "ill'. Ten Hag and his teammates found out about the interview while on the plane home.