Although his Manchester United career seemed to have ended just two weeks ago, Cristiano Ronaldo remains an “important player” for manager Erik ten Hag.
This is how the Dutch strategist himself tells it, who once again has been forced to talk about United’s iconic number seven.
Ronaldo, 37, made sporting headlines when he refused to come on as a substitute during United’s 2-0 win against Spurs and then stormed out of the Old Trafford tunnel before the final whistle was blown.
Punished by the club, according to his official website, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner was dropped from his manager’s matchday squad to face Chelsea last weekend and had to train away from the team’s other senior players.
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However, recalled back to the first team, Ronaldo marked his return with a Europa League goal against FC Sheriff earlier this week.
In light of what has been a turbulent couple of weeks, Ten Hag has reiterated that the Portuguese international’s recent antics are now nothing more than water under the bridge.
Speaking ahead of United’s upcoming Premier League clash against West Ham, Ten Hag, quoted by Fabrizio Romano, said: “Did Cristiano Ronaldo apologize? I have already said enough about that, so I gave enough explanations. We are happy that he is here, Cristiano is an important player.
“On Thursday he scored and we are happy about that. It may even be more important.”
