Ronaldo's Man Utd career hits a new low as Rangnick torment continues

Martin Macdonald

• 9 Mar 2022 09:41 GMT
• 3 min read

Cristiano Ronaldo's dream return to Manchester United is turning into a nightmare for both player and club.

During the summer, the Portuguese superstar informed Juventus of his desire to leave, and the Italian giants were happy to move him on as it meant getting his huge salary off the yearly wage bill.

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Manchester City, surprisingly, emerged as the leading contenders for his signature, but when Man Utd heard of his availability they hijacked the deal to bring him back to Old Trafford.

The Red Devils wanted Ronaldo back not only for his obvious ability, but to avoid the public relations scrutiny of having one of their best ever players turn out for their city rivals.

The former Real Madrid star couldn't have had a better start under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, as he scored three goals in his first two games - a brace against Newcastle on the opening day of the season and a strike versus West Ham.

Ronaldo would then go four games without a goal, though, and it was around this time that people started to question his suitability for this Man Utd team.

At the time of his return he was 36-years-old and was expected to lead the line at one of the Premier League's top clubs.

His biggest contributions have come in the Champions League as he enjoyed a terrific return of six goals in six games in the Group Stage.

These included vital last-minute goals against Villarreal and Atalanta to help Man Utd progress to the knockout stage.

In December, Solskjaer was sacked after an awful run of results including a 5-0 home defeat against Liverpool, with veteran German coach Ralf Rangnick coming in as his replacement.

Rangnick, famed for his high-intensity pressing style, which did not suit Ronaldo at all.

The downfall after Rangnick

In the first half of the season, Ronaldo maintained his reputation as a devastating goalscorer as he frequently found the target.

He has 15 goals in all competitions since his return, but the majority of those came in the first six months of the season.

By his standards, he is on a dreadful run of goalscoring form currently, finding the net on just one occasion in his last 10 matches.

At the weekend, things took another turn as Ronaldo was not named in the squad for the Manchester derby.

Solskjaer's replacement Rangnick claimed Ronaldo had a hip flexor injury.

However, recent reports, including from the Sun, have suggested that the player believed he was fit enough to play and was furious at being left out of the squad.

FootballTransfers exclusively revealed that Ronaldo didn't show up for the bus to the game, as he was expected to be in the stands to show support for his team-mates.

Instead, he travelled home to Portugal, very much considering his career options. This went against Rangnick's wishes as he allegedly wants players to recover from injuries close to home rather than abroad.

This can be viewed as an act of defiance on Ronaldo's part.

He subsequently returned to training on Tuesday, but did so with two bodyguards, paid to protect him from any potential disgruntled fans.

A return to Sporting CP, Real Madrid or Juventus has been mentioned, but as revealed in our exclusive, Ronaldo is campaigning for a move to Paris Saint-Germain, where he could link up with perennial rival Lionel Messi.