Cristiano Ronaldo slams Erik ten Hag’s negative mindset.
Former Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo has launched a scathing attack on Erik ten Hag, accusing the manager of lacking the winning mentality needed to succeed in the Premier League.
The criticism comes after Ten Hag downplayed United’s chances of winning the title, a move Ronaldo believes is detrimental to the team’s morale.
Ronaldo, who had a rift with Ten Hag during his time at United, recently expressed his discontent in an interview with Piers Morgan.
Despite Ten Hag’s success in winning the FA Cup and Carabao Cup, Ronaldo believes the manager’s negative attitude is holding the team back.
With United’s inconsistent form in the Premier League putting Ten Hag under pressure, Ronaldo’s comments have added fuel to the fire.
The 39-year-old’s criticism raises questions about Ten Hag‘s ability to inspire and motivate his players to achieve greatness.
‘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,’ Ronaldo said on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast.
‘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.
‘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.’
Ronaldo, meanwhile, has all but written off United’s hopes of winning the Premier League or the Europa League this season.
‘I believe that the future will be bright. I believe, but they don’t depend only on the talents. It’s more than that.’
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‘It’s all club, all, not only players, club, everything as a unit, united. You know? They have to rebuild from the bottom.
‘If not, they cannot compete. It will be impossible.
‘They can do good things, yes, they can win Carabao, yeah, but I mean, Champions League or Europa League or Premier League, difficult, in my opinion. And I wish that I’m wrong, I wish, but will be difficult.’
Ronaldo, however, praised the decision to bring in Ruud van Nistelrooy as part of the coaching staff and has urged Ten Hag to seek advice from the former United striker.
‘If Ten Hag listen to Ruud, maybe he can [help himself].’
‘I think it can help a lot because he knows the club and the club should listen [to] the guys who were there.
‘You [Rio] or Roy Keane or Paul Scholes or Gary Neville, whatever, Sir Alex Ferguson.
You cannot, you cannot rebuild a club without knowledge. Not guys who work in office. They understand.
‘The people who understand the football, it was, 99 per cent is the people who were there in the dressing room.
They know how to deal with the players. It’s the people who understand these things.
‘So I believe that Ruud is going to help because he was inside the club. He knows the club.
He knows the fans. If the coach listens to him, I think they can improve a little bit the club.’
