Man United should help Ronaldo find a new club
Cristiano Ronaldo wants to leave Manchester United this summer, according to reports.
The former Real Madrid star, who rejoined his former team from Juventus last September, feels it is the right time to leave Old Trafford for a second time after a disappointing campaign for the club.
Ronaldo is right to want to leave Man United. And the Red Devils would be foolish to stand in his way.
Cristiano Ronaldo wants to leave Man United.
Ronaldo wants to leave Man United, according to Duncan Castles writing in The Sunday Times.
The Portugal captain, 37, believes he only has a few years left at the highest level and wants to spend them competing for the biggest titles and adding to his individual achievements.
Ronaldo is desperate to play in the Champions League and therefore sees his future away from Old Trafford. Man United will play in the Europa League next season and are entering a transition period under new coach Erik ten Hag.
It seems highly unlikely that the Red Devils will be in contention for the sport’s biggest trophies at any point over the next few years. The club have yet to sign a new player this summer, or sell any of the squad’s fringe members.
Ronaldo rightly wants to leave and it is obvious what Man United should do next.
Cristiano Ronaldo: What should Man United do?
The scenario is extremely simple to understand:
- An underachieving football club have an expensive, high-maintenance footballer on their books.
- He wants to leave.
- He will be 38 in February.
- The player is a poor fit for the new manager’s style of play.
- The club need to hit the reset button and rebuild their squad.
- Ultimately, the club can’t provide what the player wants and that won’t change any time soon.
The Red Devils should immediately begin the process of helping Ronaldo find his next club. They shouldn’t even look for a transfer fee. There should be no hard feelings and they shouldn’t care about which club the Portugal captain joins next.
Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Napoli are understood to be interested in potentially signing the forward. From Man United’s perspective, it doesn’t matter which club he joins. The reunion hasn’t worked and it is time for both parties to cut their losses.
Man United should help Cristiano Ronaldo find his next club.
Ronaldo, however, was not a flop in his second spell at Old Trafford, as some have argued. The forward held up his end of the bargain – he scored 24 goals in 38 games and delivered in some of the biggest games of the season.
There have been claims that Ronaldo disrupted the balance of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team and forced the former United coach to change his tactics, which halted the team’s progress. This theory, however, only carries weight if you believe that Solskjaer had any form of a game plan beyond catching the opposition on the counter-attack and winning penalties.
Ronaldo didn’t make Solskjaer an average coach. It is not the Portuguese forward’s fault that his former teammate was over-promoted. It is also not Ronaldo’s fault that Ralf Rangnick, a director of football, was appointed as an interim manager. Man United are a mess and Ronaldo’s presence may have helped expose the faultlines, but he’s not the cause of the issues.
Ronaldo did well to score 24 goals when one considers the state of the team during the club’s worst season in over 30 years.
Man United should help Cristiano Ronaldo find his next club.
However, Ronaldo would be an issue for Ten Hag, who wants to implement a high-pressing style of play.
The 37-year-old did not press opponents 10 years ago when he was at his physical peak playing for Real Madrid. It would be nonsensical to expect him to relentlessly press now, especially during the upcoming season, which will be an extremely demanding campaign featuring a winter World Cup.
So, Man United should just wish Ronaldo well, thank him for his service and wave him off. They should put the money they will save on his salary for the next year towards replacing him. Ronaldo earns a reported €30m a year at Old Trafford. Meanwhile, Ajax forward Antony is said to be valued at €40m.
Cristiano Ronaldo is really happy with some of the players in the #mufc squad. He's convinced that six or seven important players are needed at United #mulive [@FabrizioRomano]
— utdreport (@utdreport) July 2, 2022
It’s a no-brainer for Man United. Yet, this is why the club will probably make the wrong decision. The reports from Old Trafford suggest that Man United have no intention of allowing Ronaldo to leave and expect him to report for pre-season training next week.
This may be part of a strategy to strengthen their negotiating position. If it is not, and they want Ronaldo to remain at Old Trafford, then they have been teed up with an open goal only to sky the ball over the bar.
“Ten Hag shouldn't listen to Man United's empty promises… The Dutchman just needs to look at their record in the transfer market."
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) April 12, 2022
Man United’s transfer decisions.
Man United have got very few football decisions correct over the last decade. It is difficult to think of a football club who have made as many terrible moves in the transfer market, with the exception of Barcelona and Everton.
Yet, Man United have been particularly poor in the transfer market – constantly overpaying for the wrong players while being incapable of selling unwanted players.
It has, however, been a summer of change at Old Trafford, with a new manager and a new structure which has seen John Mourtough take over football operations under new CEO Richard Arnold.
Man United fans undoubtedly want to believe that the club is getting its act together. (Even if the Red Devils have spent the summer chasing Frenkie de Jong, the Barcelona midfielder who has made it abundantly clear that he does not want to leave Camp Nou).
Ronaldo’s future, however, could be the litmus test for the new football regime at Old Trafford.
If they facilitate a smooth exit for the club legend and use his salary towards signing someone who fits into Ten Hag’s plans, then there is evidence that the Red Devils have learned from their countless mistakes.
If Man United, however, hold onto a player who wants to leave and doesn’t fit under the new manager, then it is will be the same old story. It will be just another example of a low-IQ football club finding a way to make the wrong decision, for the wrong reasons, yet again.
Related links.
- Cristiano Ronaldo asks to leave Manchester United if club receive ‘satisfactory offer’.
- Frenkie de Jong ‘determined to stay’ at Barcelona, despite Man United agreement.
- Cristiano Ronaldo ‘considering leaving Man United’ over club’s transfer issues.
