Cristiano Ronaldo has questioned Erik ten Hag’s mentality and demanded a “rebuild” at Manchester United.
Ronaldo failed to see eye to eye with Ten Hag during his second spell at Old Trafford, which ended with the mutual cancellation of his contract in November 2022.
The decision to part ways was prompted by Ronaldo appearing on TV with Piers Morgan and launching a stinging attack on the club and Ten Hag.
He subsequently joined Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia but has continued to criticise his former employers and boss, who he believes is wrong not to talk up United’s chances of winning major silverware.
Speaking on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, which is released in full tomorrow, he said: “Manchester, they need to rebuild everything, in my opinion.
“The coach… [he says] they cannot compete to win the league and Champions League.
“[As] Manchester United coach, you cannot say that you’re not going to fight to win the league or Champions League.
“You have to mentally say, listen, maybe we don’t have that potential, but I cannot say that. We’re going to try. You have to try.”
900 @Cristiano 🐐 pic.twitter.com/a5j7BNqDUh
— Rio Ferdinand (@rioferdy5) September 5, 2024
United bolstered Ten Hag’s backroom staff over the summer, bringing in Ruud van Nistelrooy and Rene Hake as assistant managers.
It has yet to bear fruit with the club winning just one of their opening three Premier League games while the manner of their 3-0 defeat at home to rivals Liverpool before the international break reignited the debate over Ten Hag’s future.
Ronaldo believes former United striker Van Nistelrooy, who won a Premier League title and an FA Cup under Sir Alex Ferguson during a five-year playing spell at Old Trafford, could be a key figure in Ten Hag’s bid to improve the club’s fortunes.
“If Ten Hag listens to Ruud, maybe he can [help himself],” he added. “I think it can help a lot because he knows the club and the club should listen [to] the guys who were there [during previous periods of success].
“You [Rio] or Roy Keane or Paul Scholes or Gary Neville, whatever, Sir Alex Ferguson. You cannot rebuild a club without knowledge. They understand.
“The people who understand the football, 99 per cent is the people who were there in the dressing room. They know how to deal with the players. It’s the people who understand these things.
“So I believe that Ruud is going to help because he was inside the club. He knows the club. He knows the fans. If the coach listens to him, I think they can improve a little bit the club.”
In addition to Van Nistelrooy and Hake joining United, new minority owners Ineos have also strengthened the sporting structure with Dan Ashworth and Jason Wilcox taking on significant off-field roles.
Ronaldo said: “This club needs time to rebuild because it’s still one of the best clubs in the world, but they need to change. They understand that. This is the only way.
“This is why they start to change again the structure of the club, the president, the infrastructures and everything. The owners of the club.
“So I’m happy because [things are changing]. I’m not happy the way it all happened, but in the same way, we cannot control some points of our life sometimes, but it’s done, already done.”
