Erik ten Hag has insisted that Cristiano Ronaldo is "totally committed" to Manchester United in the wake of their 2-0 win over Sheriff Tiraspol.
The Dutchman's comments mark a significant turnaround and come just months after it emerged that Ronaldo had left some of his teammates 'surprised' by jetting off to Portugal rather than supporting them during the Manchester derby last March after picking up an injury.
Speculation over Ronaldo's future has been rife in recent weeks - even after the 37-year-old failed to land the summer switch he craved before the September 1 deadline.
Ronaldo's desire to quit the club in the summer coincided with United's pre-season tour of Thailand and Australia, which the veteran forward ended up missing. And ever since the Portuguese superstar has been consigned to a bit-part role as he plays catch-up to his teammates who are already up to speed with Ten Hag's philosophy.
But Ronaldo was restored to the team for Thursday night's Europa League win over Sheriff, and Ten Hag's latest comments appear to indicate that both parties are now singing from the same hymn sheet.
The United chief stressed that, despite speculation, Ronaldo was fully committed to the cause. Speaking after Thursday night's match, Ten Hag said: "He's totally committed to this project, totally committed to this team, totally involved, he also has connections that are coming around him and he is constructing connections so I'm happy with that.
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"He has to work really hard and invest to get the right fitness. He will score more goals. He's really close, when he gets more fitness he will score more."
With the World Cup looming on the horizon, Ronaldo will be desperate to feature more prominently in the coming weeks before the Premier League pauses for a mid-season break.
Ten Hag has insisted since his arrival at Old Trafford that Ronaldo is a key part of his plans, but that didn't prevent him from laying down the gauntlet to Ronaldo after the striker missed a large portion of the club's pre-season preparations.
"As we said, Ronaldo is here," Ten Hag said earlier this month. "And, as we all know, he didn't have a pre-season. You cannot miss pre-season. It's a base. Especially with the game we play, the way we want to play. We don't play in the same way we did last year, there is no comparison. This demands cooperation and it demands certain positioning in - and out - of possession. The other thing is his fitness.”
But with Ronaldo now starting to get to grips with United's new approach after finally knuckling down, there is every chance that the former Real Madrid and Juventus man could re-establish himself in the first-team fold in the coming weeks.
And that could not come at a more ideal time for Ten Hag, who was without the services of both Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial in midweek.
