Pranav Nair
Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo hits back at former Juventus teammate Giorgio Chiellini
According to Sky Sports (h/t The Mirror), Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has hit back at former Juventus teammate Giorgio Chiellini.
Italian and Juventus defenders Chiellini and Leandro Bonucci have both taken potshots at Ronaldo since he returned to Old Trafford earlier this summer. While he scored bucketful of goals for the Old Lady, he never quite managed to lead them to the biggest prizes on the continent.
Despite landing Ronaldo, United find themselves in sixth spot heading into the weekend’s fixtures. They could find themselves further off the pace should they lose to Liverpool at home on Sunday.
Chiellini was critical of Ronaldo for not just quitting Juventus but also not giving the Italians enough time to replace him. Perhaps not a solid argument given that Federico Chiesa is settling the league alight in Turin.
“Ronaldo left on August 28 and it certainly would’ve been better if he had gone earlier so we could prepare. Unfortunately, we paid a price for that.”
Ronaldo, meanwhile, is unperturbed by Chiellini’s comments. He appears to have no remorse over leaving his former teammates and insists he sleeps soundly at night. Personally, the comments do not do the United ace any favours in regards to him being a team player.
“I sleep good at night. I go to my bed with my conscience very good. Keep going with that because I will still close mouths and win things.”
There have been some critics who have blamed Ronaldo for upsetting the balance in the team. The 36-year-old is a serial goalscorer but his lack of physical exertion in terms of pressing and such is non-existent.
While Ronaldo is aware of his defensive responsibilities, he reckons that his focus should be at the other end. It will however matter for little should he bag a hat-trick every game only for United to lose.
“I know when the team needs my help defensively. But my role in the club is to win, help the team to win and to score goals – it’s part of my job.”
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While Ronaldo is well within his rights to do what is best for him, one could say there is some merit to Chiellini’s arguments. We hope he turns out to be more of a team player at United. After all, he did leave us once for Real Madrid in the past.
