Ten Hag Blasts Ronaldo for Letting Down Manchester United

Erik ten Hag has laid some serious blame at Cristiano Ronaldo's feet, claiming the star forward "let the team down" during their time together at Manchester United. Ten Hag's remarks also touch on broken promises from the club's owners, which he says played a significant role in his dismissal in October 2024. Ronaldo made his highly publicized return to United in August 2021, just before Ten Hag took over as manager in 2022. However, their relationship soured quickly. Tensions flared when Ronaldo refused to come off the bench in a match against Tottenham, followed by a scathing TV interview where he criticized the club. This led to the mutual termination of his contract just a month later. In an interview with The Athletic, Ten Hag expressed his disappointment, stating, "He let the team down, and he let me down, because we planned with him. He's one of the best in football history. I respected him a lot. But at that time, as a manager, I had to make a rational decision and keep the players I admire in." Ten Hag also revealed that Ronaldo failed to follow through on a crucial post-match fitness run after a humiliating 4-0 loss to Brentford. "I confronted him with this," Ten Hag noted. "Many times I say, ‘Ronnie, everyone wants to work for you to bring you in the right position, but if you can’t bring yourself in the box, you can’t score.’" Remarkably, just five months after winning the FA Cup and signing a contract extension, Ten Hag found himself out of a job. He shared his frustration regarding unfulfilled promises made by the club's owners, particularly about player decisions. He felt "embarrassed" when Scott McTominay was sold to Napoli without his approval. "They promised me loyalty, they promised me backing, they promised communication, that we get aligned. We spoke about the issues. But the promises, they didn’t keep." Ten Hag recalled his direct request: "I said, ‘No selling Scott McTominay.’ And in the end they sold him. I got, of course, very embarrassed and disappointed."