Cristiano Ronaldo goes straight down the tunnel before full-time in Man United's 2-0 win over Spurs

Cristiano Ronaldo went straight down the tunnel before Manchester United's game against Spurs had even finished.

United produced arguably their best display under Erik ten Hag, beating third-placed Spurs courtesy of second-half goals from Fred and Bruno Fernandes.

But while everything was positive from a United perspective and they moved within one point of the top four, the win was perhaps overshadowed by Ronaldo's actions.

The Portuguese superstar was an unused substitute at Old Trafford and did not fancy sticking around for the full 90 minutes.

With 89 minutes on the clock and there still being stoppage time to play, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner was spotted heading back to the dressing room with his bib still on.

Ten Hag chose a front three comprising of Antony, Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford and explained just why he decided to drop Ronaldo prior to the game.

 "Marcus [Rashford] was ill at the weekend, he was not available for 90 minutes," Ten Hag told MUTV.

"Otherwise, he would have started on Sunday. You saw at the moment Marcus came in, we were getting more dynamic in front. That's what we need today, to break the lines, but also to build up this game and in the end, we know we have a threat from the bench with Cristiano [Ronaldo] to finish the game.”

Scott McTominay, Anthony Elanga and Christian Eriksen were all brought on late on and not for the first time, Ronaldo was left on the bench.

After he was overlooked in the 6-3 hammering at the hands of Manchester City, Ten Hag said he did not bring him on "out of respect for his big career".

Speaking on Amazon Prime's coverage, Ten Hag confirmed he did not speak with Ronaldo prior to him leaving early and said he would "deal with it tomorrow".

In pre-season, Ronaldo caused controversy by leaving Old Trafford before the final whistle of the friendly against Rayo Vallecano.

On that occasion, Ten Hag branded his conduct "unacceptable".

Ronaldo was desperate to leave United for a second time in the summer and handed in a transfer request.

But a potential suitor could not be found and Ronaldo has struck twice in 12 games, including notching his 700th career goal.

However, he clearly remains unhappy and speculation around his future going into the January will only increase.

Featured Image Credit: Image: Peacock

Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United, Premier League, Tottenham Hotspur

Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and wrestling. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the field - including the first UK interview with The Hardy Boyz after their return to WWE. He has never sported a pair of Lonsdale Slip-ons, contrary to reports.

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