Man Utd news: Erik ten Hag explains Cristiano Ronaldo decision as Neville issues warning | Football | Sport

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag and club legend Gary Neville both weighed in on Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to the starting line-up at the Brentford Community Stadium, having missed out against Brighton last weekend. Neville also warned his former club to ‘defend for their lives’ against the Bees with 5ft 9in centre-back Lisandro Martinez among a small squad of Red Devils stars chosen to take on a big, physical Brentford side.

Ronaldo reportedly asked to leave the club last month and missed the vast majority of pre-season due to personal issues. His only warm-up action was the first 45 minutes against Rayo Vallecano in a friendly at Old Trafford and after being hauled off at half-time, he controversially left the stadium before the final whistle. 

It therefore wasn’t too surprising when the Portuguese was left out of the starting line-up against Brighton last weekend. But Ten Hag’s experimental approach – which involved deploying midfielder Christian Eriksen in a false nine role – backfired as the Seagulls won 2-1. 

Ronaldo was thrown back into the action at the Brentford Community Stadium and before it got underway, both Ten Hag and Neville shed more light on his situation.

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“We had problems from numbers in the squad, offensively,” Ten Hag explained to Sky Sports. “He’s always a threat and he scores goals, so that’s why he’s in the team. Second half last week when he came on, it makes it difficult for the opponents. I expect the same today.”

When quizzed on the magnitude of the match, Neville added: “This is a really big game considering what happened last weekend. Liverpool coming up in eight or nine days so this is a massive game for the club in terms of building confidence.

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Ronaldo is thought to be keen on joining a Champions League club after United finished sixth last campaign. A host of top European sides, including Chelsea and Bayern Munich, have since distanced themselves from the veteran forward which leaves his future hanging in the balance. 

Ten Hag publicly maintains that his chats with Ronaldo have been positive and the club are keen to see him fulfil the final year of his contract. He scored 24 goals in all competitions last term after sealing a blockbuster return to the Red Devils following spells with Real Madrid and Juventus.