Keep your distance, Cristiano! Erik ten Hag believes it is unfair that Ronaldo was forced to leave Manchester United's friendly against Rayo Vallecano early... but the Dutch manager admits he is unsure whether the forward will play against Brighton this weekend.
The United manager claimed it was unfair for Ronaldo to bear sole responsibility because a number of United players, including his Portugal teammate Diogo Dalot, also fled Old Trafford early on Sunday.
So do your homework and figure out how many players are left. This is neither correct nor acceptable. I'm not sure what the connection is. He had a hand in it. There were a lot of people involved.'
When asked if he had spoken with Ronaldo and the other players, Ten Hag responded, 'You mention it, correct them, and move on.' We've said enough on the subject. 'I said it wasn't correct.'
After a difficult first summer in charge, Ten Hag can only hope his team gets off to a fast start against Brighton on Sunday.
It has been dominated by the Ronaldo narrative since he requested to leave the club and then missed the majority of preseason due to an unspecified family issue.
It's no surprise that United's No. 7 dominated the build-up to the game, given that his agent Jorge Mendes has another 26 days to arrange a transfer.
Ten Hag, on the other hand, stated that he is planning for the new season with Ronaldo, 37, in his squad and wants last season's 24-goal top scorer to stay.
'I'm overjoyed,' he said. 'We have a great striker, and I'm glad he's here.' I'm pleased with the entire team. We're doing well, and Cristiano is doing his best.'
For the time being, the most pressing question surrounding Ronaldo is whether he will start against Brighton despite having only played 45 minutes of football this summer.
Anthony Martial, who led the attack in preseason, will miss the game due to a hamstring strain, leaving Ten Hag with a big decision to make for his first Premier League team selection.
Does he start Ronaldo or stick with the players who have worked hard at Carrington and on tour by finding an alternative replacement for Martial?
'We'll see on Sunday,' Ten Hag said. 'I believe we'll be able to solve it.'
However, there is no doubt that the Dutchman would prefer to have a few more options at his disposal. He has made no secret of his desire for another striker, and United's summer pursuit of Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong shows no signs of abating.
Ten Hag is sticking to his stance that he wants the right players in, and that he is content with what United already has.
'You don't need any player; you just need the right player,' he explained. 'If it isn't the right player, I'm fine with the current squad.'
'Do you want Frenkie?' I'm not sure. It's about finding the right players, and I can't speak about a player under contract with another club.'
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