Man United parted ways with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner following his jaw-dropping interview.
Piers Morgan has hit back at claims Cristiano Ronaldo is “finished” after leaving Manchester United for the second time before agreeing a mega-money contract with Saudi club Al-Nassr.
Ronaldo, 37, was shown the door at Old Trafford in November following that jaw-dropping TalkTV interview with media figure Morgan in which the five-time Ballon d’Or winner criticised the club, manager Erik ten Hag and people associated with United past and present. He went on to pitch up at Al-Nassr following his World Cup exploits in Qatar with Portugal.
Cristiano Ronaldo during his bombshell interview with Piers Morgan. (Image: Talk TV via Twitter)
Speculation over his future was at fever pitch this summer when Ronaldo wanted to find himself a new team with Champions League football on offer. However, there were no takers for the Portugal captain at that particular level then and, seemingly, when heading into the January window.
According to widespread reports, the former Real Madrid and Juventus superstar, who had two spells with United, penned a record two-year contract with Al-Nassr which is expected to see him pocket around £172million over that time. He has yet to make his debut for the Saudi club.
In playing terms, Ronaldo has taken a major downward step for his new adventure. However, according to Morgan – when prompted by one particular user on social media – that does not mean the Portugal captain is “finished” when it comes to his elite athlete status.
Addressing his 8.3million followers on Twitter while quoting a message to him, Morgan wrote: “Last time I checked, @Cristiano had just signed the biggest transfer deal in football history to become the world’s highest-paid athlete at the age of 38, playing in the only country to beat world champions Argentina in the World Cup.”
Morgan, 57, continued: “That’s my kinda ‘finished’.”
Man Utd introducing ‘Ronaldo rule’ in stark contrast to Liverpool’s recent change
Manchester United have reportedly introduced a ‘Ronaldo rule’ over their wages, with boss Erik ten Hag setting his club on a different path to Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp
The introduction of a so-called ‘Ronaldo rule’ at Manchester United stands in stark contrast to Liverpool’s own approach to wage structures.
The Red Devils has reportedly brought in a discliplined salary cap for future contracts, in a bid to avoid the mistakes they made in bringing Cristiano Ronaldo back for a second spell. The superstar earned around £500,000 per week before his departure last month.
And United are keen to avoid overpaying in a similar fashion going forwards, as boss Erik ten Hag seeks to overhaul his squad. Chiefs at United have reportedly devised the new strategy in a bid to avoid jealousy becoming rampant in their squad.
According to the Sunday Mail, the new structure will apply to players running out of contract, as well as new signings. The decision is a marked difference from Liverpool’s own recent moves.
The Anfield giants have previously had a notoriously strict wage cap, resulting in stars such as Sadio Mane moving on. But when Mohamed Salah appeared set to leave, the Premier League giants ripped up that structure and handed him a £300,000 per week deal.
That contract makes him the highest-paid player in Liverpool’s history and signalled a change of approach. It was a move that was praised by Jamie Carragher, though Salah has struggled to hit his heights of recent seasons, scoring only seven top-flight goals this term.
Liverpool ripped up their wage structure to hand Mohamed Salah a bumper new contract ( Image: Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
“Maybe money [was the main factor in negotiations]. There is nothing wrong with that. Salah has been as good as anybody in the Premier League or anyone in European football, certainly in his position,” Carragher told Sky Sports.
“And he’ll feel he deserves to be paid as well as those. And we know the types of numbers other players get at other clubs. Liverpool have never really gone to that level in terms of numbers, certainly under FSG.
“I think that a lot of Liverpool fans respect that model because it has brought a lot of success to the club so they almost accept how they go about things not just with player contracts but also with signing players.
“Now and again when you have someone as special as Salah the rule that you have to have in place you have to certainly bend them, maybe not necessarily break them but you have to maybe go closer to a position that maybe you don’t want to.”
While Carragher is happy for Liverpool to rip up their established strategy, Ten Hag is clear that United have to move the other way and bring down their astronomical wage bill.
“The club has bought an unimaginable number of players in recent years who have not been good enough. Most purchases have been average – and at United average is not good enough,” he recently told VI Magazine.
“United’s shirt weighs heavily. Only real personalities, who can perform under great pressure, can play here. We needed personalities. That’s why the acquisition of Casemiro was so important.
“Along with Raphael Varane, we now have a second player who has experience of winning titles. We want the best of the best. Any players we bring to Manchester United must meet the highest standard.”
Source: manchestereveningnews.co.uk; mirror.co.uk
