Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo returned to training on Tuesday for the first time since he declared his desire to leave Old Trafford.
Last month, Ronaldo shocked United to the core by asking the club to let him leave if a satisfactory offer was to come in for him.
The decision came after United endured a dismal 21/22 campaign which saw them finish sixth in the Premier League, meaning they will be playing in the Europa League instead of the Champions League in the upcoming season.
As a result of their failure to secure a place in Europe’s premier competition, Ronaldo made it clear that he sees his future away from Old Trafford. The 37-year-old wants to be challenging for the top honours, something he feels United are not capable of doing at the moment.
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The five time Ballon d’Or winner missed the club’s pre season tour of Thailand and Australia due to family reasons but has now returned to the UK this week.
According to Spanish news outlet AS, Ronaldo received a warm welcome from his teammates upon his return to the club’s Carrington training ground.
Ronaldo was seen arriving on Tuesday morning alongside his agent Jorge Mendes, the pair apparently held talks with manager Erik ten Hag. The meeting was to discuss the new manager’s project at the club and his mission to bring the glory days back to Old Trafford.
The Portuguese then spoke with his Brazilian and Portuguese teammates and it was reported that he halted the conversation by saying to his friends: “Okay, that’s it, enough. It’s time to train. Let’s go.”
After training, Ronaldo sat with his teammates for food and the atmosphere was described as ‘good’, which is good news for United fans.
It is clear that despite his wish to seek a move away, Ronaldo will always be professional around the training ground.
However, his wish could soon be dashed as his options are slowly but surely fading. Many top clubs around the continent have distanced themselves away from the race for Ronaldo’s signature.
The likes of Chelsea, Napoli, Juventus, Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich have all ruled out a move for the Portuguese.
It could be that Ronaldo will have to stay with United and play in the Europa League.
According to former United player Teddy Sheringham, the club should look to offload the 37-year-old.
He told Sportsmail: “I half saw it coming, people are saying shall Ten Hag build his team around Ronaldo, but if he wants to go, he goes. That opens up a whole new corridor for United.
“You could get in two or three players on that sort of wage and that is a lot of money they could spend each month.”
All eyes will now be firmly fixed on Ronaldo’s every move as his future remains uncertain with the new season fast approaching.
Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United, Erik Ten Hag
Marcus Chan