Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag on Friday confirmed Cristiano Ronaldo refused to come on as a late substitute against Tottenham Hotspur before the striker left early during Wednesday's 2-0 victory.
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag on Friday confirmed legendary striker Cristiano Ronaldo refused to come on as a late substitute during Wednesday's 2-0 victory against Tottenham Hotspur before storming out of Old Trafford ahead of the final whistle. The Dutchman has dropped the Portuguese talisman for Saturday's trip to Chelsea as punishment after the 37-year-old previously left early during a pre-season friendly against Rayo Vallecano.
In his press conference ahead of Saturday's clash at Stamford Bridge, Ten Hag confirmed reports Ronaldo refused to come on and said, "What (happened in) the talk is between Cristiano and me. The (club) statement is also clear."
"I am the manager, I'm responsible for the top sport culture here and I have to set standards and values, and I have to control them. We are in a team," the United boss added.
"After Rayo Vallecano I said it's unacceptable but he wasn't the only one. That is for everyone, when it's the second time it will have consequence. That is now what we did. We'll miss him tomorrow, it's a miss for the squad but I think it's important for the attitude, mentality for the group," the Dutchman remarked.
🗣️ "Erik did he refuse to come on to the pitch on Wednesday night?"
🗣️ "Yes" 😬 pic.twitter.com/A3IJvPlvnO
'The second time has consequences.' 🚫
Erik ten Hag gives the latest after enforcing disciplinary action against Cristiano Ronaldo 🚨pic.twitter.com/h9tdcrPBRU
Ten Hag reiterated Manchester United's statement that Ronaldo "remains an important part of the squad" although the striker trained on his own on Friday.
"I think it will be a reflection for him and also for everyone else," said the Dutchman on what he hoped Ronaldo's punishment would achieve.
"I set a warning at the start of the season and the next time it has to be consequence. When you are living together, playing together, football is a team sport and you have to fulfil certain standards and I have to control it," the United boss added.
Although Man United defeated top-four rival Tottenham on Wednesday, the Ronaldo incident threatened to overshadow their preparations for a second significant match against Graham Potter's men.
Ten Hag insists the team's focus has been firmly on their trip to Stamford Bridge.
"It's about Chelsea, we have a big game to play. All my focus is on that game, all the focus from the staff and the focus from the players is on that game. We have to win that game and do everything we can, so we need full concentration to prepare for the game and play our best," the United manager stated.
"When you play in top football sometimes there are rumours and noise, you have to focus on the job and that is to perform tomorrow," Ten Hag concluded.
Meanwhile, several fans took to Twitter to applaud the United boss for taking such a firm action against Ronaldo, despite his legendary status.
"This bald man has huge balls and I rate him for this," said one user on the micro-blogging site. Another fan said, "As a fan of Ronaldo, I'm disappointed in his actions and agree with the manager. It is the individual commitment to a team effort that makes things work. Discipline."
"Benched the captain, rewards good performances, demands discipline, told the club to suspend player's contract talks, and has dropped Cristiano Ronaldo for being unprofessional — there's only one boss at Manchester United. Erik ten Hag," noted @UtdFaithfuls Twitter account.
Here's a look at some of the other reactions:
All the lads rn https://t.co/UTvOjwZzAf pic.twitter.com/e0hw4zHoe6
— M (@SerialWeiners)I love this man🔥 https://t.co/EbIsfaFtY0
— Ólolàdé mi Ten Hag🔥 (@Unclegold1)And that, ladies and gentlemen, is exactly why Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich didn't try and sign Cristiano Ronaldo. https://t.co/MD71ZCJfGl
— Stefan Bienkowski (@SBienkowski)Benched the captain, rewards good performances, demands discipline, told the club to suspend player's contract talks, and has dropped Cristiano Ronaldo for being unprofessional — there's only one boss at Manchester United.
Erik ten Hag ❤️ pic.twitter.com/7IoAbp5CHn
Ten Hag lowkey played this perfectly. He waited until Ronaldo did something on his own so he can take all the criticism. Whatever ETH does now with him will be seen as more justified. Let the media focus on Ronaldo while he works on the football https://t.co/hFJauyhOCh
— marco🇨🇦 (@marco4549)Meanwhile here’s Messi more than happy to come off the bench for his team. A true leader. ❤️ https://t.co/stFHr3LXeQ pic.twitter.com/eSKhkUro7X
— Neymar PR 🇧🇷 (@bagofnuts_)We'll that sums up why ETH was furious with him https://t.co/esKHxT4kH0
— Deepanshu (@silentuser2000)Terminate hìs contract so no club signs him https://t.co/VpwD7RQklw pic.twitter.com/wbkw9xj0OQ
— NPC (@AKingWasHere)As a fan of , I'm disappointed in his actions and agree with the manager. It is the individual commitment to a team effort that makes things work. Discipline. https://t.co/pCMEiNhwvg
— Namai Yvonne (@NamaiYvonne)My Manager!👏 https://t.co/iOBpvLIKAr
— Blain_MUFC (@mufc_timothy)This bald man has huge balls and I rate him for this https://t.co/h9bzNm7oEE
— Nick🇬🇷 (@paofcnickk)