Cristiano Ronaldo has returned to group training with Manchester United. The superstar was previously banned from normal team activities last week. Ronaldo refused to enter last Wednesday’s match against Tottenham and was seen leaving the stadium before the match ended. He too was left out of the squad for United’s trip to Chelsea on Saturday.
However, the BBC reports that Ronaldo and manager Erik ten Hag remained in communication. The Portuguese international met this Tuesday with his teammates to resume training. United players had Monday off, so this was the first available day of the week for Ronaldo to train.
The club was upfront last week about the decision to essentially ban the star from the weekend’s big game. Cristiano Ronaldo will not be part of Manchester United’s squad for this Saturday’s Premier League game against Chelsea. The rest of the team is fully focused on preparing for that match,” read an official statement.
Cristiano Ronaldo returns to training at United
However, United never committed to a time frame of when to reintroduce Ronaldo to the team. Ten Hag even made it clear that he wanted his highest paid player to be an integral part of his team.
“What we said in the statement is that Cristiano remains an important part of the team and I’m counting on him for the rest of the season,” ten Hag said last week. “We want to fulfill our ambitions.”
“What I said is that I don’t want to miss him. I want him to be on the team and get involved in every game because he has an impact.”
While he may return to normal training and could play against FC Sheriff on Thursday, Ronaldo’s future with the club is still in doubt. The player could well be looking for an early exit in January. However, the list of teams willing to take on his salary and headaches appears to be dwindling.
PHOTO: IMAGO/PA Images
