Roy Keane and Gary Neville engaged in a fiery debate live on air over Cristiano Ronaldo after the veteran was omitted from the Manchester United squad that drew 1-1 with Chelsea on Saturday evening.
Ronaldo was punished by Erik ten Hag after he refused to come on as a substitute and then left Old Trafford before the conclusion of United's midweek win over Tottenham.
The club initially released a statement confirming that Ronaldo would not be apart of the squad that travelled to Stamford Bridge at the weekend before Ten Hag discussed Ronaldo's punishment in more detail at his pre-match press conference, but the 37-year-old still ended up overshadowing the match.
Both Keane and Neville, who played alongside Ronaldo during his first spell at Old Trafford, had contrasting views over the situation and how it had been handled - although both are in agreement that Ronaldo is unlikely to have a future at the club in the wake of his latest indiscretion.
But the duo clashed during Sky's post-match coverage as they debated over Ronaldo's role in the team alongside fellow pundit Jimmy Floyd-Hasselbaink.
"Was that a tribute video?" Neville said initially after a video showcasing some of Ronaldo's goals was shown on Sky Sports.
"For me, Erik ten Hag had no choice, no option. Cristiano’s left the ground twice, you can’t do that, his Instagram post which said I respect my teammates and sometimes in the heat of the moment you do something wrong. On the eve of pre-season, he asked for a transfer, he’s building up a list of things. It’s a messy end and Ten Hag is trying to establish control.
"I always think about the fact, Ronaldo has played 100s of games where players have had to watch him, you have to make sure you’re in the changing room, shaking players’ hands then you have it out with the manager separately. It’s not about Erik ten Hag. He had no other choice but the players in the dressing room had to have some action against them.
"Lots of players have watched him, now he’s had to watch them, your careers like a mountain, you’re in for a few games, out the team, get in then you get to the top of the mountain then you have to accept whether you play for a big club and accept less games. Or you go to a lesser club and play all the time and Cristiano is going to have to go to somewhere else that's going to play him every week because he can’t accept being on the bench. That’s fine.
"End it this week or create a truce to get to the World Cup, it’s not doing him any favours. Leaving the dressing room before full-time, that’s not what he does, if you’re doing things like that you’ve got to leave."
But after Neville's opening monologue, it all kicked off, with Hasselbaink caught in the crossfire.
Keane fired back: "Gary, there’s players at Man United who have done a lot worse than what he’s done?"
Neville responded: "In this current moment?" Keane said: "Where do you want me to get started? Scholesy, great lad… let me finish. Scholesy refused to play at Man United."
Neville quickly hit back: "I know he did," before Keane added: "We said nothing to him." Neville : "He was fined two weeks wages."
Keane then went on: "Ronaldo will be fined for this, he’ll find his way back. Rio Ferdinand missed a drugs test, he got banned for eight months. Cantona…"
Neville interrupted: "He was banned for six months," but Keane retorted: "Yeah, who’s fault is that? The clubs fault or the teammates?"
Neville then said: "Do you not think Cristiano Ronaldo should be punished this week?" before a frustrated Keane fired back: "Dead right. You’re saying he can’t deal with being sub. He was top goalscorer."
But Neville refused that notion, adding: "He can’t," before Hasselbaink chimed in. He said: "He’s right, he can’t be dealing with being a sub."
Keane responded: "They played Man City a few weeks ago and it could’ve been 16. The manager says I’m not bringing him on because he didn’t want to disrespect. He goes to Everton a week later, comes on, scores a goal. Starts against Newcastle …"
Neville interrupted again: "Roy, there’s not many Manchester United fans who would have Cristiano Ronaldo in the starting 11."
Keane fired back: "I couldn’t care less what fans think, I couldn’t care less, a lot of the fans haven’t got a clue what’s going on."
Neville doubled down on his stance though, insisting: "They [Manchester United] score more goals without him and they get more points without him. That’s a fact. He’s coming to the end of his career, Manchester United are a better team without him, he’s just got to get used to it or leave."
Keane retorted: "That’s fine. If you feel you’re being treated unfairly which he obviously thinks, there’s arguments for and against."
Hasselbaink challenged him, adding: "Do you think he’s been treated unfairly?" Keane instantly responded by saying: "I think he probably feels that."
Neville was unmoved and said: "I heard you before the game, your mentality is a unique mentality. Your fiercely competitive, you have to play, what you’ve done in your careers. Normal folk, normal players, that’s not what you do leave the changing room and going off the pitch."
Keane hit back: "You keep talking about Man United being better without Ronaldo, lets look at the start of the season when he was in a bob (sic), he didn’t play against Man City."
Neville responded: "Do you not think they’re better without him? Come on," but Keane was unmoved and insisted: "In the starting 11? No, I wouldn’t say that."
Hasselbaink disagreed: "I don’t think they can carry him. They can’t carry him," before Neville added: "I think they’re better without him."
Keane defended his stance, adding: "Would you hang your hat on Martial or even Rashford or Ronaldo? Ronaldo came to Man United when he was 17, we loved him, we loved him everything about him because he wanted to be the best. Simple as that.
"He had his critics then because he was going over quickly, end product, but what I love about Ronaldo now, he’s 37, he’s had enough, he snapped, he’s 37 and still wants to be the best in the world and that’s why I admire him. We sit here week in, week out and we praise bad players."
Neville fired back: "Roy Keane the manager would deal with it. Roy Keane the manager would have to deal with him"
But Keane angrily retorted: "There’s players at Manchester United, Antony, went on strike at Ajax to come to Manchester United. Ten Hag the manager, it’s all about the spirit, the group."
Neville continued: "[But] Ten Hag’s not criticised him, he’s handled it well. He’s been calm with it. Ten Hag’s not come out, stitched him up and said he’s out of order. He said I’ve spoken about Cristiano enough."
Keane responded: "He’s talking about the spirit after the game, do you not think he’s speaking to Ronaldo? Ten Hag left Ajax to come to Man United, he should be competing for league titles."
Neville was having none of it though and sniped back: "He walked off against Everton after being left out by Ole in one of his first games, shaking his head at the end of the game. He was doing that with the body language to Rashford, he knows what he’s doing. He’s experienced and players of that power have a real negative impact when they do it."
"They all do it," Keane argued. "I’d be worried if he was happy to be taken off."
Neville went on: "The influence they have on other players is really negative, they’re in an influential position. I love him to bits but you can’t defend him leaving the ground twice."
Keane responded: "I’m not saying that… and there was other players who left. They will get punished, we were with players who did it and got punished it’s a mistake of course. But he gives you something back, we sit here every week praising bad players."
Hasselbaink then chimed in again, adding: "He does not give enough back at the moment. He doesn’t," but Keane fired back: "He scores a goal every two games!"
Hasselbaink said: He doesn't," but Keane relented and insisted: "He does. Do you want the stats? He scores a goal every two games!" Hasselbaink responded bluntly: "They lose games with him, they can’t carry him."
Keane said: "They lost at Man City, they lost at Brighton, Brentford, they’re all celebrating like they’ve won the league - they’re fifth in the league."
Neville then brought up comments from some of Ronaldo's former Juventus teammates. He said: "Did you see the comments from Bonucci and Chiellini? They’re two great pros."
But Keane reacted angrily and snapped back: "Who said they’re great pros? Have you been in the dressing room with them?"
Neville responded: "Roy.. they’ve been top players for 20 years who’ve won lots of trophies. The same things happened at Manchester United, we know him, we love him but he can’t accept being the star man. He’s going to have to leave, that’s it, that’s all it is."
Keane hit back bluntly: "He should’ve left in August and hopefully in January," but Neville went one further by adding: "I hope he leaves next week!"
"He can't leave next week, can he? asked Keane , before Neville said: "He can say to the club, thank you very much and find a new club because I’d like to see him score goals until he’s 42, scoring a thousand goals."
Keane responded by saying: "If he’s doing the business, which he was doing in a bad Manchester United team, he missed pre-season - not matter what player you are that has a huge impact - Ronaldo won’t play every game of course he’s not."
But Hasselbaink warned: "He won’t settle for that - and I’m a big Ronaldo lover."
Keane then took aim at Ten Hag, adding: "What I’d say about Ten Hag is he’s made a lot of decisions, he’s got to win football matches but he’s not winning enough of them, they’re fifth in the league. They beat Tottenham and they’re acting like they’ve won the European Cup. They beat Spurs last season, Ronaldo got a hat-trick, if you’ve got a striker who’s scoring every two games, you’ll do for me."
Neville then doubled down on his verdict that United were better off without Ronaldo by adding: "Scoring goals, I know it sounds crazy it’s the most important thing. But you can be a better team without just goalscorers it’s happened time and time again.
"Sometimes you can have two players up front, Mark Hughes wasn’t the greatest goalscorer in the world but you’re better if you’ve got someone to play off. Cristiano’s just become a natural goalscorer, Erik ten Hag doesn’t want that."
Keane responded: "He certainly feels what’s gone on, he’s been unfairly treated. If you feel that as a senior pro there’s a justified anger, you’re going to react that way but he’s got flaws like we all have."
But Hasselbaink hit back again, insisting: "He can’t react that way, it’s unforgivable."
Neville then mused: "You’ve got a choice to make at the end of your career if you’ve been a great player, which he has, do you accept coming out of the team playing 25 games a season or do you have 40 games a season that aren’t that good? That’s what every player that are great have to decide. He won’t settle for 25 games a season, his mentality is I have to play every minute and it’s good."
But Keane insisted: "He deserves more than 25 games a season," before adding: "What people are that [the message coming out of the club on Ronaldo]? The people on the payroll? The Media lads?
"You spot them a mile away, the PR machine from Man United the last couple of days Ronaldo didn’t want come on, he didn’t want to come on in the 87th, 88th minute, ‘I deserve better’, 2-0 up after 70 minutes, give him 15 minutes then do you know what the problem might be? He might score.Then the manager has got a real headache. He scored an important goal against Everton that’s not six months ago, it’s two or three months ago."
Neville then asked: "Roy, are you suggesting, I don’t think it’s the case, but are you suggesting that Ten Hag has a personal vendetta against Ronaldo? Because I don’t think that’s the case."
Keane insisted: "I don’t see it that way but I can understand why Ronaldo’s reacting the way he has. We’ve seen top players react that way. [It] Should’ve ended in August."
Neville then said: "What’s important to Cristiano is he wants to keep scoring at the highest level. Goals are everything to him, playing for his team is everything to him, he wants to play in the Champions League because that record he has, he’s 10 to 12 ahead of Messi, that’s so important to him. That battle that they’ve had for all those years, he’s not going to give it up easily, he wants to go to a team in the Champions League, he’s on a lot of money, £400(per-week), £500,000-per week…
But Keane hit back: "He’s a billionaire, Gary, he doesn’t care about money."
Neville continued: "He has to accept less money to go to a Champions League club and play or he has to go play for a non-Champions League football. Some were saying he was offered £130m to play in Saudi Arabia - he’s not going to do that."
He added: "Sporting Lisbon were mentioned or a Portuguese club," but Hasselbaink said: "I can’t see that happening even in Portugal."
Keane argued: "The fact he still wants to do that is fantastic. We go to games every week and we watch some bad games, we praise bad players. [Hasselbaink starts to respond] Let me finish, let me finish, we watch players who are finished at 32, 33, they take a big pay packet to the States, China, wherever, or they retire. This guy wants to keep on playing. I’m not giving him a thumbs up for his behaviour, far from it.
Neville fired back: "Is that not what the problem is here? We’re all here thumbsing (sic) him up for his good attitude, but what we’re saying is he stormed off to the car park, suspended and fined two weeks wages. So what?"
Keane said: So what? So what’s the big deal?" before Neville urged Sky to give them more time, quipping: "So what? Don’t finish. Forget the promos."
Keane defiantly added: "If Ronaldo played most of the games, he’d still be the leading goalscorer."
Neville quizzed: "Do you think Manchester United will be better and win more points as a team?" Keane emphatically responded: "Yeah." Neville insisted: "I don't think so."
Keane added: "You asked me a question and I said I think so," before Hasselbaink agreed with Neville, concluding: "I don't think so."
