Revealed: The advice Rooney has given Ronaldo amidst Man Utd struggles
Robin Bairner
- 8 Oct 2022 19:55 BST
- 3 min read
Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney has told Cristiano Ronaldo to be patient as he battles through the toughest period of his career at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo has found himself persistently on the bench this season under manager Erik ten Hag and has scored only one goal so far this term – a penalty against minnows FC Sheriff in the Europa League.
It is quite a comedown for the five-time Ballon d’Or winner and has reportedly left him “at loggerheads” with the former Ajax manager.
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Rooney, who is Man Utd’s all-time leading scorer, has given him some advice on getting through this tough spell.
“Cristiano is - there’s him and Messi - two of the greatest players to ever play the game, but ultimately time catches up with us all. He’s obviously not the player he was when he was 22, 23 for instance so it’s a tough one for him,” Rooney told The Telegraph.
“Knowing him it’ll be very difficult for him to sit on the bench and obviously in the game against City he didn’t get on, so that’ll be tough for him. I’m sure if he stays patient his chance will come and it’s then taking those chances and trying to force his way back in.”
Rooney on Ten Hag
Rooney, though, would not criticise Ten Hag for leaving Ronaldo out, despite the nature of the 6-3 loss to Manchester City last week.
“I think that's the manager's decision, really. I think the manager has obviously gone a different way in terms of playing and they've been successful,” he added.
“Obviously the last game wasn't but they've had some relatively good success over the last few weeks playing in a different way, a different style and with younger players.”
Ronaldo is expected to be benched once more when Manchester United meet Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday.
