Cristiano Ronaldo has been told that he still has a future at Manchester United despite new manager Erik ten Hag's perceived preference to favour youth.
Ten Hag dropped a hint at the weekend over his plans for Ronaldo next season. United's new boss said: "From tomorrow (Monday), my focus will be on United, and I will of course get deep into things there.
"What I have to say about it is, the detailed analysis still has to begin, I still have to work with the team, but let me be clear that at United there are a lot of good players around. We have to make them function as a team but definitely Ronaldo, he is a giant."
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Former Arsenal man Nigel Winterburn has added to the calls to keep Ronaldo next season as United bid to improve their finishing position from 2021-22. Speaking to Paddy Power, Winterburn said: "Manchester United won’t just bring Cristiano Ronaldo in for one season and ship him out so quickly, it just won’t happen.
"He still offers huge value to Manchester United, and we’ve seen that in his goalscoring record. His age is but a number.
"He has huge experience, and he could play an important role if United opt to go down the younger route in setting an example of how to train and play, as well as what it means to win and lose. He can help those younger players around the training ground and if he can accept that, he might be used in a slightly different way and have less game time.
"It doesn’t surprise me that he’s still there. If you have someone of his quality, you have to use them and use them in the right system.
"I believe there’s a role for him to play next season at United, he’s a superstar. Sometimes we have to forget the players age, it’s the mentality and the desire on the pitch that still counts the most, not the age."
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