Over Half Of Manchester United Fans Don't Want Cristiano Ronaldo

Over half of Manchester United fans don't want Cristiano Ronaldo to remain at the club next season, despite being the club's top scorer so far this season.

Ronaldo's arrival back at United, 12 years after he left the club to join Real Madrid, was met with much fanfare from fans and pundits alike.

Along with the signings of Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane there was lots of optimism at Old Trafford for the season, but things have not gone to plan.

Instead United are now battling for a top four finish, moving into the position following their entertaining win over Leeds on Sunday, and it's far from guaranteed.

Story after story about unrest in the camp have surfaced, with claims that the Portugal forward is in a 'power struggle' with Harry Maguire over the captaincy.

With 15 goals in all competitions since his return, you might think United fans are still happy with their star forward but that's not the case.

According to a fan survey by the Athletic, 55% of the club's supporters don't want the 37-year-old at the club past this season, though a majority do want him in the current starting XI.

Ronaldo remonstrates with the referee during United's win over Leeds. Image: PA Images

Real Madrid's all time top goalscorer has scored on nine occasions in the league this season, making him the league's fourth top scorer.

Only Raheem Sterling, Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah have scored more but there are questions whether he fits into Ralf Rangnick's style of football

He recently went six games without scoring, his longest drought for sometime, before scoring against Brighton, and Rangnick hasn't been afraid to drop him.

Whilst the German is unlikely to be manager next season at Old Trafford, his potential replacement's own system could be a reason for many United fans not wanting Ronaldo to remain beyond the summer.

Ronaldo was subbed off against Leeds by Rangnick. Image: PA Images

When it comes to the next boss, it seems that Ajax manager Erik ten Hag has taken over from PSG's Mauricio Pochettino as the fans' favourite.

Ten Hag is wanted by 58% of the fans at Old Trafford, whilst shockingly only 25.5% of those surveyed want former Tottenham Hotspur manager, and Champions League finalist, Pochettino.

That might be due to the Argentine's struggles in Paris this season, as he has found it difficult to contend with the front three of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi.

Whilst Maguire denied that there were any issues with him and Ronaldo, the centre back's future as club captain is still in question.

The survey also found that over 40% wanted Bruno Fernandes to take the armband off the centre back, who managed to score from a corner after 140 previous attempts by United.

Maguire isn't even the fans' second favourite to be captain, with David de Gea pulling in more votes than the England international.