Varun Pai
Daley Blind has blamed Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo for the club’s early-season struggles
Speaking to Sportnieuws (h/t Express), Daley Blind has blamed Cristiano Ronaldo for the recent struggles of Manchester United.
The Red Devils have won only 2 games out of their last five and dropped points for a second consecutive week against Everton on Saturday. Although it looked like they were going to draw against Villarreal in mid-week as well, Cristiano Ronaldo popped up to score the winner in the last minute of the game.
That strike marked the Portuguese’s fifth goal of the season in as many starts for the Old Trafford outfit. The 36-year-old has quickly taken to United’s style of play and is a key reason why the club are still actively competing in three competitions.
However, former club ace Daley Blind feels otherwise. The Dutchman believes that the team’s patterns of play are influenced by Ronaldo, while he has also criticized the striker’s lack of movement. Blind told Sportnieuws (h/t Express):
“Ronaldo doesn’t really need to play an active role. Like ‘take your time’. You also see the other players looking at you like, ‘how are we going to solve it then?’ Normally, the striker runs from one central defender to the other. This caused a lot of miscommunication.
“Now, they are not playing in their familiar pattern. When the ball was deflected, you saw Paul Pogba coaching that they had to put all the pressure on. Ronaldo did not do that; he is not like that. He only thinks about goals and hopes others will conquer the ball.”
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The Old Trafford outfit will face Liverpool and Manchester City post the international break and Ronaldo will have to prove his mettle against United’s title rivals this season if the club hope to lift their first Premier League title since 2013.
However, given his form and ability to score in big games, one would not rule out the Portuguese showing up for the Manchester-based club when they need him the most.
