Cristiano Ronaldo's leadership skills were again on show before he led Manchester United to another victory.
The Portuguese star scored a hat-trick, including an 76th minute winner, as the Red Devils saw off Norwich City to bolster their top four hopes. Ronaldo returned to Manchester in the summer for a second spell after more than a decade away, but has divided opinion.
One thing that has been clear though is his winning mentality and drive to push standards. United have been trophyless since 2017, whilst during that time Ronaldo has claimed a host of honours. His actions before kick-off underline his personality.
Ronaldo often walks out last from the tunnel next to the Stretford End. However, with his teammates lined up, he walked from back to front, addressing all his teammates. He stopped to have prolonged chats with David de Gea, who was walking out behind skipper Harry Maguire.
He also was engaged in dialogue with Jesse Lingard and Anthony Elanga. The former has been used sparingly whilst Elanga is still very much in the infancy of his career and is looking to push on with Ronaldo an excellent individual from whom he can learn.
Ronaldo scored twice in the first-half at Old Trafford, the first of his strikes being laid on by Elanga. The Canaries then drew level before the five-time Ballon d'Or winner smashed home his - and his team's - decisive third goal. Interim boss Ralf Rangnick said: “Yes, it is [remarkable]. Especially the second and third goals were brilliant goals. [He showed] a lot of physicality with the header and he was quite like against Tottenham today, the difference maker.”
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The United No 7 has now scored 21 times in all competitions and recently notched a hat-trick against top four rivals Tottenham. His teammates have been warned however that they cannot continually rely on the Portuguese forward to come up with the goods.
Ronaldo's return didn't see him assume the armband at Old Trafford. Maguire has continued to captain the side, something that has led to reported issues internally. The centre-half has struggled for form this season which has only amplified the spotlight that is already on him. Maguire was handed the responsibility early in his United career, which copped criticism from some.
The Red Devils skipper did respond on Twitter on reports of unrest, stating: "I've seen a lot of reports about this club that aren't true and this is another." Rangnick himself has said previously: "This is absolutely nonsense. I've never spoken to any player about a possible change of captaincy. Harry's fully aware of that and so is Cristiano and all the other players."
