Manchester United could see legendary footballer Cristiano Ronaldo return to the Old Trafford club for a third time, at least according to the opinion of a former United striker. Ronaldo signed for United back in 2003, replacing David Beckham in the famous number seven shirt.
Ronaldo was a mainstay at United until the summer of 2008, after United did the Premier League and UEFA Champions League double, when Real Madrid came calling. He stayed at United for another season, leaving for £80 million in the summer of 2009, after Champions League disappointment.
Ronaldo broke many records after leaving United, staying at Real Madrid until the summer of 2018, scoring 450 goals and 131 assists in 438 appearances for the club. At Juventus he scored 101 goals and 22 assists in 134 appearances before returning to United in the summer of 2021.
Ronaldo’s return to Old Trafford was short-lived, not even spending a season and a half at the club. But he continued his record at the club, finishing with 145 goals and 64 assists in 346 appearances for the club. After an interview with Piers Morgan, Ronaldo’s contract was nullified.
He has since been playing for Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia where he has continue his goalscoring, which now stretched for 23 consecutive seasons and he has so far scored 60 goals and 16 assists in 66 appearances for the club. His playing career is not going to last forever.
Before signing for United, Ronaldo played for Sporting Lisbon where he scored five goals and six assists in 31 appearances for the club. He has scored 761 goals and 239 assists in 1015 appearances in club football, with a further 130 goals and 45 assists in 212 caps for Portugal.
Former United striker, Louis Saha, who scored 42 goals and 16 assist for United in 124 appearances believes that Ronaldo could return to the Theatre of Dreams for a third stint at the club – but after he has hung up his boots as a player. The Frenchman spoke to TVSporten, saying:
“Cristiano Ronaldo has the passion and dedication to return to Manchester United one day. That could be as a coach or even a manager.
“His second spell didn’t end how everyone had hoped, and you can see why that frustrated him.
“He didn’t see the same formula and didn’t see the passion from young players that he had been used to seeing.”
Saha believes that Ronaldo would make an excellent coach but must work in his communication skills first. Ronaldo’s United return saw just 27 goals and five assists in 54 appearances, not cutting it as a veteran player on his return. Saha continued by talking Ronaldo’s communication, saying:
“Now he will know that he needs to find a new way to communicate when he becomes a coach. Which maybe isn’t as harsh or direct as it was when he was at the club. He will work out how to be successful and use all his knowledge to do that.
“We’ve seen Roy Keane go into management and have success. Cristiano will understand what he needs to do as a manager. I see no reason why he wouldn’t be a success.”
Written by Paul
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2024-08-20 13:09:22
