Piers Morgan reveals how his explosive interview with Cristiano Ronaldo happened

Piers Morgan has explained how his explosive interview with Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo happened.

Ronaldo shocked the football world to the core as parts of his no-nonsense interview were published on Sunday night, he unleashed attacks on United’s senior figures, former manager Ralf Rangnick, current boss Erik ten Hag and also took aim at his former teammate Wayne Rooney.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner accused the club of showing next to no empathy after Ronaldo endured a difficult summer. He also expressed that he felt betrayed by the club.

Now, Morgan has revealed how the interview happened in the first place.

He said on talkSPORT: “Well, Cristiano asked me to do it – simple as that. I didn’t ask him, he asked me.

“It was all very recent. He’s been thinking about this for a while. I think it’s no secret that he’s felt a build-up of deep frustration about what’s been happening at United over the last year.”

Morgan continued: “He felt it was time to speak out. He knows it was going to be incendiary, and he knows this is going to rattle some cages, but he also feels that he should be doing this.

“He knows people will criticise him, but he also knows that what he’s saying is true. Sometimes the truth hurts.”

When asked why Ronaldo wanted to do the interview, Morgan said: “I think part of the timing was the World Cup is obviously about to start, he’s with Portugal, a good team, he can have a good World Cup. It gives him a month away from United.

“It gives time for what he said to settle in and he can come back and try and resolve things. As he makes the point in the interview repeatedly – he loves Manchester United, he loves the fans.”

The TalkTV host added: “But what he’s come back to, in his view, is a stagnated club which hasn’t moved on at all from where he left it.

“He can’t understand why not. He feels if he doesn’t speak out, nothing will change.”

However, Morgan refused to pinpoint the exact date and time the interview took place, only revealing that the chat took place recently.