Dutchman Erik ten Hag, the former manager of Manchester United, revealed details of his dispute with Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo during his time in charge of the English football club.
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Ronaldo had returned to Manchester United, the "Red Devils," in August 2021, coming from Juventus of Italy, to play under the supervision of the Dutch coach, but the latter excluded him from some matches following a dispute between them.
Ronaldo terminated his contract with Manchester United in November 2022 by mutual consent and joined Saudi club Al-Nassr, while Erik ten Hag left his post in October 2024.
Erik ten Hag said in comments reported by TNT SPORTS, regarding his dispute with Ronaldo: "He let the team down, and he let me down too, because we had plans with him. I traveled to Portugal to talk to him about what I had hoped for before joining Manchester United."
He added: "He is clearly one of the best players in the history of football, I respected him a lot, but at that time, as a coach, I had to make a rational decision and keep the players I admired."
The 56-year-old coach continued: "I told him many times: everyone wants to work with you to put you in the right place, but if you can't get into the penalty area yourself, you won't be able to score."
He explained: "He was unable to do that. It is wrong to tell me that I expected him to put pressure on the opponent, or that he was exhausted, but he could not. He did not run with or without the ball, and the reason is that he did not prepare himself well."
The Dutch coach continued: "Every great team should embrace its best player, but the best player must work for the team."
He revealed that Ronaldo used to tell the players, "Save your energy in training. I understand that when you are at your peak physical condition, you have training sessions, you can save your energy, but first you have to train yourself to reach the appropriate levels of physical fitness."
Erik ten Hag: “Cristiano Ronaldo was telling the players: save your legs at training”. “I understand it when you are top fit… …but first you have to train yourself to get into the right fitness levels”, told @lauriewhitwell on @TheAthleticFC .
Ten Hag concluded: "The players have to act. They have a big responsibility. For some, football is not the top priority, and for some, Manchester United has not been the top priority."
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