EPL 2021-22: Rangnick explains Ronaldo's infuriating substitution in Manchester United's win against Brentford

Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick has defended his decision to substitute star striker Cristiano Ronaldo after the Portugal international expressed displeasure at being hauled off after 71 minutes during the Red Devils' clash against Brentford. 

Crutical strikes from Anthony Elanga, Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford amplified Manchester United's Premier League top-four hopes with a 3-1 win in West London on Thursday night. The clash at Brentford Community Stadium saw a rather furious and dejected Cristiano Ronaldo in the dugout upon being replaced by Rashford, with the visitors leading 2-0. A win at Brentford means the Red Devils' have finally secured their first league win of 2022.

In a post-match press conference, Ralf Rangnick revealed that the only reaction he got from Ronaldo was, 'Why me? Why did you take me off?'. Explaining the reason for the Portuguese's second-half substitution, Rangnick added, "I had to decide on the interest of the team. We did the same thing when we were 2-0 up against Aston Villa and did not want to repeat the same mistake. I understand Ronaldo is ambitious, but maybe when he is a manager in the future, he will make the same decision after 75 minutes."

Stating that he did not expect Ronaldo to hug him after being substituted, the German said that he is aware of how goalscoring players think, and the call was taken in the team's best interest. Rangnick, who has been at Old Trafford for six weeks now, also clarified that he does not have any issues with Ronaldo. He added that a discussion took place before the Villa Cup game about Ronaldo's injury, and it was agreed not to use him.

"He (Ronaldo) was coming back from injury and hadn't played for one-and-a-half weeks. We had the likes of Rashford and Anthony Martial on the bench, so why not use it? I would make the same decision again. He was available again today, and we decided to play him from the start. The most important thing is that we win games, and this comes first," the German concluded.

Also read: Cristiano Ronaldo warns he is not in Manchester United to compete in the 7th place

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• Manchester United
• Cristiano Ronaldo
• Ralf Rangnick