Erik ten Hag and Cristiano Ronaldo's war of words has continued this week after the release of a podcast.
Ronaldo has started a YouTube channel - that was inevitable in the current media landscape - and he recently sat down with his former teammate Rio Ferdinand for a chat.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner left United in dramatic circumstances in November 2022 and there was no way back after he conducted an explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
The eyes of the world were watching and Ten Hag's authority was challenged, but he saw Ronaldo off in no-nonsense fashion and the forward made an escape to Saudi Arabia.
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Ronaldo's interview with Morgan was an extraordinary episode and Ten Hag handled it with class, but it became a talking point again this week due to his recent comments on the podcast.
Providing a fresh view on his departure, Ronaldo said: “To prove that I'm right or wrong, this is not my issue anymore. I say what I have to say and for me it's done. But to be honest with you, what I wish for Manchester, it's what I wish for me. The best they can make, again the best team they can and I love that club, you know, I'm not, I'm not that kind of guy that forgot the past.
“When I'm back there, I was very happy. I was one of the best scorers. I did, I did unbelievable things with the club. My first season with 37, I was the third best scorer of the league. I scored all the group stage. I scored every game. Even in the league, I scored 17 goals or 18 goals. I did amazing.
“But as I told you, Manchester, they need to rebuild everything, in my opinion. The coach, they say they cannot compete to win the League and Champions League. Manchester United coach, you cannot say that you're not going to fight to win the League or Champions League. You have to be, to mentally say, listen, maybe we don't have that potential, but I cannot say that. We're going to try. You have to try.
"This club needs time to rebuild because it's still one of the best clubs in the world, but they need to change. They understand that. This is the only way. This is why they show, they start to change again, the structure of the club, the president, the infrastructures and everything. The owners of the club. They're investing in the training ground…So I'm happy because [things are changing] I'm not happy the way it all happen, but in the same way, we cannot control some points of our life sometimes, but it's done, already done.”
Ten Hag hit back at Ronaldo during his press conference on Thursday and said: "He said that Manchester United can't win the Premier League. He said this if you read the article very well. He's far away in Saudi, far away from Manchester. Everyone can have an opinion. It's okay."
It's no secret that Ten Hag and Ronaldo didn't see eye to eye during their brief time together, but there is an untold story that provides insight into how frosty their relationship was.
That story is about how Ronaldo was told to remove his earring, an expensive piece of jewellery, by Ten Hag and how he snapped at being told to do something he didn't agree with.
It's understood the power struggle between Ten Hag and Ronaldo started at the very beginning of their relationship and tension slowly built due to the earring situation.
Ronaldo wore an earring in training during his time under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick, but Ten Hag had a different policy and told his players they couldn't wear jewellery.
It's understood that was a source of early friction between Ronaldo and Ten Hag and it eventually produced a reaction from the 39-year-old,
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