Aheed Abrar
Cristiano Ronaldo reacts to win over Sheriff Tiraspol as Erik ten Hag discusses Manchester United icon’s future
Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo took to Twitter and expressed his happiness at getting the win over Sheriff Tiraspol in the Europa League. Erik ten Hag also discussed the Portugal international’s future.
The Red Devils visited Moldova in the second fixture of the 2022/23 UEL group stage. United lost the first game as Real Sociedad came to Old Trafford and took a 1-0 victory.
United were able to get the job done against Sheriff, however. Jadon Sancho scored the opening goal of the game. Ronaldo followed it up by scoring a penalty in the 39th minute.
The Portuguese started a second straight game for the first time this season. Ronaldo has had to settle for a role as a substitute in Ten Hag’s reign up until now. However, the 37-year-old has played 90 minutes against Sociedad and a majority of the game in Moldova.
Ronaldo also got off the mark for the 2022/23 campaign with his penalty. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner had failed to score up until the Sheriff game.
Speaking at full-time via The Mirror, the gaffer was delighted with the Portugal international’s performance against the Moldovan opposition. Ten Hag feels Ronaldo is slowly getting back to his best and adapting to the new system.
“He’s [Ronaldo] really close, when he gets more fitness he will score more. He’s totally committed to this project, totally involved, he also has connections that are coming around him [on the pitch] and he is constructing connections so I’m happy with that.”
United started with a similar team that has seemingly been trusted by the manager. In the Premier League, Ten Hag has preferred a consistent lineup. And the Red Devils are on a four-game win streak in the league.
Ten Hag rotated the squad against Sociedad. Against Sheriff, the gaffer returned to starting the players that have given him positive results, barring the inclusion of Ronaldo.
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Marcus Rashford has taken the 37-year-old’s place in the centre-forward position in recent weeks. However, the England international was unavailable for the game in Moldova.
It remains to be seen whether the Portuguese will continue to start as United return to action on 2 October against Manchester City after the international break.
