Varun Pai
Cristiano Ronaldo unimpressed with the drop in standards at Manchester United
According to the Daily Mail (h/t The Mirror), Cristiano Ronaldo has been alarmed by the drop in standards at Manchester United since he left in 2009.
The Portuguese international first joined the club nearly 20 years ago in 2003. A budding winger back then, Ronaldo played in some of the best United teams under Sir Alex Ferguson at the time.
The bare minimum back in the day was winning at least one major piece of silverware, with the Red Devils scooping up three consecutive Premier League titles and one Champions League between 2006-2008. However, the landscape has changed since then.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has not brought us any closer to a league title than we already were despite the heavy investment in the playing squad. While he mght have brought in stability at first, the club appears to be a limbo today.
Jadon Sancho was signed for £73million but has not been bedded into the system yet. Donny van de Beek was a Champions League starter for AFC Ajax but cannot find game-time at Old Trafford. Jesse Lingard performs as a substitute but is not afforded first-team chances.
The formations have already been changed twice this season, with the latest 3-5-2 keeping most of the frontline talent on the bench. Despite turning 36 this year, the former Juventus man has had to do more than his fair share of work and dig us out of tough situations.
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Hence, the levels are certainly not where they used to be previously. And from Ronaldo’s viewpoint, it certainly looks like a case of ‘how the mighty have fallen’. Thus, there are several problems but few solutions.
It is now down to Solskjaer to chalk and change strategies and go on a winning run if he hopes to keep his star man happy at the theatre of dreams. After all why should only one player pull the weight.
