Erik ten Hag has a Cristiano Ronaldo-sized problem he needs to solve before the start of the season.
And one man he can look to for advice on how best to deal with the issue is Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who has proven on more than one occasion that it is better to part company with a player who doesn't want to be at your club than persevere and keep them against their will.
Ronaldo announced earlier in the summer that he wants to leave Man United, taking new boss Ten Hag by surprise. The Portugal international then failed to travel to Australia and Thailand with his Red Devils teammates for pre-season due to personal reasons, meaning he is still yet to train under the Dutchman ahead of the new season.
Ronaldo and his agent Jorge Mendes held crunch talks with Ten Hag on Tuesday at the club's Carrington training ground. United chiefs were hoping they'd be able to change the striker's mind but he remains determined to leave for a Champions League club.
Man United's stance is unchanged and although they'd consider letting Ronaldo leave on loan for the campaign, have no intentions of allowing the forward to leave on a permanent basis.
Liverpool boss Klopp has previously dealt with the difficult issue of players wanting to leave on his watch and may provide the solution to the problem currently standing in Ten Hag's way.
Philippe Coutinho made it abundantly clear he wanted out at Liverpool back in 2018 and after initially digging his heels in, Klopp let the forward leave - a decision that worked out well for the Reds, and not so well for the Brazilian.
More recently, Sadio Mane came to Klopp and made it clear that he wanted out at Liverpool.
Again, the prospect of being without a player of Mane's stature is a daunting one for the Reds, who are challenging for the Premier League title and the Champions League this coming season.
But Klopp knows that parting company with a player who doesn't want to be part of the team anymore is better in the long term and gave Mane his blessing to leave for Bayern Munich.
"Sadio told me and his agent told me that he was looking for a new challenge," Klopp told Viaplay Football.
"And if that happens early enough like it was in this case, and if that happens in the right way and the player and the agent are working, and the new club where they want to go is ready for negotiations, then it should be like it was now.
"Then you say 'thank you' with the biggest respect ever, I couldn't have more respect for Sadio, what a player he is and I wish him the best. And he will play for ages, he can play until 38 or 39 with his body, it's absolutely crazy.
"Bayern have got a really good player but we had him for six years, so that's fine."
As aforementioned, Ten Hag and Man United are keen to keep Ronaldo against his will but doing so may create more disharmony at Old Trafford at a time when the Dutchman is trying his best to restore order to the dressing room.
Letting Ronaldo leave will be a blow for the Red Devils, but would also free up space in the starting XI for a player who wants to represent the club and prove themselves to Ten Hag.
