Erik ten Hag knew what to expect when taking his Manchester United pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
The journalists at Carrington were hardly going to waste multiple questions about the 'challenge' of FC Sheriff when perhaps the biggest story of the season, Cristiano Ronaldo, had just broken out last week, dominating headlines and discussion. Ronaldo refused to be substituted against Tottenham and he stormed down the tunnel early at Old Trafford, which forced Ten Hag to make him train separately away from the first-team and ensure he was not available to make the squad for Chelsea.
The Manchester Evening News reported on Monday that Ten Hag was set to hold face-to-face talks with Ronaldo on Tuesday before potentially welcoming the forward back into first-team training, and the forward was pictured smiling upon his arrival at Carrington on that morning. Ronaldo then trained with the first-team later that afternoon, as expected after talks.
