Cristiano Ronaldo and Sir Alex Ferguson were reunited ahead of Manchester United 's clash with Newcastle, as the Portuguese superstar was presented with a special award from his old boss.
After notching his 700th club career goal in the Red Devils' hard-fought 2-1 victory over Everton last Sunday, Ronaldo became the first male player to reach the spectacular landmark. To commemorate the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's feat, Ferguson gave him an award before United kicked off against Newcastle.
The legendary ex-Red Devils manager stood alongside his former prodigy to hand him a silver plate, as David De Gea also received a a gift from Ferguson. The United goalkeeper made his 500th appearance for the club on Sunday, becoming only the 11th player in the Red Devils' history to reach the milestone.
De Gea was signed by Ferguson in 2011 and after a shaky start has gone on to establish himself as one of United's greatest ever shot-stoppers. Current gaffer Erik ten Hag heaped praise on the 31-year-old Spaniard pre-match, telling manutd.com: "It is fantastic. If you perform in 500 games for a club like Manchester United, that tells a lot about you. The talent, the personality – so that achievement is huge and I really reward that, I value that, and I want to congratulate him [for] that.''
As for Ronaldo's incredible achievement, the Dutch boss declared last week: "That is really impressive. To score 700 goals is a huge performance. I'm really happy for him. I congratulate him on that performance and I’m also happy as it’s his first goal this season in the Premier League. He had to wait for it and I'm sure there will be more goals."
Frank Lampard also paid a classy tribute to the 37-year-old striker, who the now Everton manager battled against on multiple occasions during his playing days. "It is outstanding. He is one of the greatest players to have graced the game and in an era when we have had him and [Lionel] Messi. The comparisons between them doesn't matter," Lampard stated.
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"They are both incredible players in football history. The numbers they have racked up are abnormal numbers that have become normal. When he was on 699, I wanted him to score in the Europa League the other night. But in the cold light of day you have to give him credit. It is amazing."
Ten Hag also believes that Ronaldo's confidence will've been boosted by reaching goal number 700, having endured a difficult start to the campaign being in and out of the starting XI. "Every player needs [confidence], even when you are the best in the world," Ten Hag went on to say.
"I have worked with many goalscorers and they need goals in every season to have that feeling, to have confirmation of their intuition. Once they have some goals they come in a flow and games go easier. That will happen with him as well."
