Emmanuel Petit has declared that Erik ten Hag must stop pandering to Cristiano Ronaldo - and start putting Manchester United first.
How to deal with Ronaldo has been one of Ten Hag's trickiest conundrums since he took over at Old Trafford this summer, when the Portuguese superstar decided he would like to leave. The veteran striker ultimately stayed put but has continued to dominate headlines, especially after he refused to come on against Tottenham in October.
Ronaldo was punished by training alone and missing the Premier League clash with Chelsea, but has since returned to first-team action. The 37-year-old even wore the captain's armband for Sunday's 3-1 defeat by Aston Villa, but Petit is concerned by what he views as the player receiving an ill-judged "second chance" by his manager.
The former Arsenal and Chelsea midfielder told Lord Ping : "Erik ten Hag is putting Ronaldo before Man United - he needs to prioritise the club and not the player I feel that some choices have been made politically sometimes. Erik ten Hag wants to keep Cristiano Ronaldo happy but the priority isn't Ronaldo.
"The priority should be Manchester United so you have to put your best team out all the time. The fact is that the team isn't the same when Cristiano Ronaldo is on the pitch. I know Ten Hag wants to give Ronaldo a second chance but I'm convinced that the solution is to prioritise the team and not the player."
Petit's comments on Ronaldo and Ten Hag come after former United defender David May harked back to the days of Sir Alex Ferguson to highlight how one of the game's greatest-ever managers dealt with players who cause trouble.
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Noting the likes of Roy Keane, Jaap Stam and Ruud van Nistelrooy were allowed to leave when they thought they were "bigger than the club", May exclusively told Mirror Football , on behalf of 888sport : "It's a tough call. Ronaldo might want to leave, and if he wants to leave, there's the door.
"Any player that wants to leave Manchester United, don't stand in their way. If he's not going to be beneficial to the team, then it's fair enough [to sell him], depending on the transfer window."
Ronaldo has been in and out of the United line-up this season but he has started the last four games across all competitions, scoring once in that time. His overall tally for the season stands at three goals, two of which have come in the Europa League, with his winner against Everton the only time he has found the back of the net in the top flight.
