Rio Ferdinand has said that Cristiano Ronaldo should have started for Manchester United during their Premier League opening weekend defeat to Brighton.
Erik ten Hag's side could not continue their pre-season momentum as they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat at Old Trafford in what turned out to be far from the dream start for the Dutchman. The Reds were 2-0 down in front of their own fans after just 39 minutes as they failed to get to grips with the game.
The performances from a variety of players prompted questions over their place in the team going forward – with particular concern over United's inability to control the midfield. The pairing of Scott McTominay and Fred failed to take control of the match as the need for United to reinforce their options in that position became alarmingly obvious.
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There was a lot of talk before the game over the fitness of Cristiano Ronaldo and whether Ten Hag would consider starting the 37-year-old given his lack of pre-season training with the squad. The crowd got their answer as the five-time Ballon d'Or winner joined the rest of the substitutes in the newly positioned home dugout.
Within eight minutes of the second-half, Ronaldo was sent on in an attempt to salvage something from the match. There were questions raised over Ten Hag's decision-making following the full-time whistle as his side failed to overturn the two-goal deficit in the second-half.
Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand is among those who think that Ronaldo should have started the Reds' Premier League curtain-raiser. Speaking on his YouTube channel 'Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE', he gave his opinion on the saga surrounding the omission of the Portuguese international.
He said: "For a player, the worst thing for you to do is sit on the bench and come on.
"Somebody who is not fit, you start him and say 'you’re going to play 45 [minutes] and do what you do'.
"He’s experienced enough to pace himself through a game. You have to trust these guys when they’re that age and that experienced – [he's] one of the greatest players of all time."
With plenty of ongoing speculation over the forward's future at Old Trafford, Ferdinand argued United cannot afford to let Ronaldo leave.
"Man United are never letting him go right now. Where are they going to find 24 goals?" he asked.
Ferdinand was then asked how he envisaged Ronaldo slotting into United's front-three ahead of the Brentford match on Saturday.
"Not even a question, start him, Jesus," he said. "A 50 per cent fit Ronaldo, you're putting your money on him before anyone [else] in that team."
He added: "I would start Ronaldo up front, Rashford on the left, Sancho on the right."
Rio Ferdinand's Manchester United starting XI: De Gea; Dalot, Varane, Maguire, Shaw; Fernandes, Martinez, Eriksen; Rashford, Ronaldo, Sancho.
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