Erik ten Hag wants Cristiano Ronaldo out of Manchester United after the striker ‘lost the few allies he had left’ in the first team dressing room.
Ronaldo stormed down the tunnel and out of Old Trafford before the end of United’s 2-0 win over Tottenham on Wendesday.
Manager Erik ten Hag said he would “deal with” Ronaldo on Thursday in his post-match interview and did just that, with a United statement confirming he would not be involved in Saturday’s clash with Chelsea.
The Sun report Ten Hag is ‘furious’ and wants Ronaldo out of the club having fined the 37-year-old two weeks wages, amounting to £720,000, for defying his manager.
The Dutch boss ‘wants either the player’s contract, that runs to the end of the season, ripped up or for the Portuguese to be dumped in the January transfer window’, according to the report.
It’s claimed ‘Ronaldo has lost the backing of the few allies he had left in the Red Devils camp’ with ‘several squad members already upset with him for trying to engineer a move out of the club early in the season’.
His Spurs strop was ‘the final straw for the few team-mates who had continued to back him’.
Ronaldo released a statement which has been branded “absolutely pathetic”, in which he failed to apologise for his ‘heat of the moment’ actions.
The statement read: ‘As I’ve always done throughout my career, I try to live and play respectfully towards my colleagues, my adversaries and my coaches. That hasn’t changed. I haven’t changed
‘I’m the same person and the same professional that I’ve been for the last 20 years playing elite football, and respect has always played a very important role in my decision-making process.
‘I started very young, the older and most experienced players examples were always very important to me.
‘Therefore, later on, I’ve always tried to set the example myself for the youngsters that grew in all the teams that I’ve represented.
‘Unfortunately that’s not always possible and sometimes the heat of the moment gets the best of us.
‘Giving in to the pressure is not an option. It never was. This is Manchester United, and united we must stand. Soon we’ll be together again.’