[imagesource: Twitter / @SkySportsNews]

As the dust settled on a Manchester United win over Fulham on Sunday, thanks to a late goal by 18-year-old Alejandro Garnacho, it looked like fans would be able to go into the Qatar World Cup break on a drama-free high.

Then Cristiano Ronaldo’s bombshell interview with Piers Morgan dropped and all of that went out the window.

37-year-old Ronaldo accused Manchester United of “betrayal,” said he does not respect manager Erik Ten Hag, and accused unnamed figures at Old Trafford of wanting to force him out.

At the risk of bringing out the Ronaldo fanboys en masse, this is the same guy that pushed for a transfer, missed the start of preseason training (after being given permission by the club because his daughter was ill), and refused to come on as a substitute for last month’s Premier League win against Tottenham Hotspur.

Still, he was recently handed the captain’s armband by Ten Hag, who has repeatedly stressed that he sees Ronaldo as a valuable part of the squad.

The Piers Morgan interview is said to have angered many inside the club, in addition to fans who are able to look beyond their CR7 worship at the bigger picture:

Erik Ten Hag and Manchester United players are extremely disappointed with the manner and timing of Cristiano Ronaldo’s interview. Club only found out about the interview as they were preparing to fly back from London this evening after the Fulham game. 1/3

— Kaveh Solhekol (@SkyKaveh) November 14, 2022

Ronaldo was told on Thursday that he would not be in the starting XI against Fulham but he would have been in the squad. He told the club he was ill. No one at United has ever disrespected Ronaldo – even after he asked to leave & after he refused to come on as a sub v Spurs 3/3

— Kaveh Solhekol (@SkyKaveh) November 14, 2022

Had Ronaldo stuck to criticising the team’s owners, rather than the manager, he would have had most people on his side.

But he didn’t and that is telling:

Would’ve loved it if Cristiano Ronaldo only called out the state of the club and the Glazers.

You don’t slander Erik ten Hag publicly and still expect Man Utd fans to back you by saying, “I love the fans, they’re always on my side.”

I’m sorry. I’m 100% on my manager’s side ❤️ pic.twitter.com/8cU1Hxx8vp

— UtdFaithfuls (@UtdFaithfuls) November 14, 2022

Criticism was swift:

Which club is going to want to sign Ronaldo now?

Which manager is going to want to deal with him?

Utterly disgraceful way to behave.

I hope the United fan base get behind the team and the manager now and I hope Ronaldo never comes near Old Trafford again.

— Steven Bartlett (@SteveBartlettSC) November 13, 2022

Ronaldo “I don’t respect the manager”

Ronaldo under ETH: Announced he wanted to leave, refused to come on as a substitute, walked off the bench & left before the game had finished.

99% of United fans will be on the side of ETH, which shows how badly Ronaldo has handled this.

— Jamie Carragher (@Carra23) November 13, 2022

You’re wrong, Jamie.

The cult of CR7 runs so deep that these people will go on TV and say this:

No way they actually exist

“Change the manager instead of Ronaldo”

“Makes a big difference to the whole team”

“If he leaves there’s no need to watch Man Utd, there’s nothing left at Utd” pic.twitter.com/Uu9N3ADOTv

— ⚽️ (@AlexDuggan20) November 14, 2022

Meanwhile, every time the likes of Jesse Lingard or Dean Henderson uttered anything remotely resembling criticism they were told to stay in line and respect the team that paid their wages.

Fanboys aside, even Ronaldo’s Portuguese teammate Bruno Fernandes, who has been a constant vocal supporter, appears to have grown tired of the circus.

Here’s The Mirror:

Ronaldo and Fernandes will link up for Portugal in the showpiece tournament and were reunited on Monday. But in an awkward exchange captured on camera, all is seemingly not well between the pair in the wake of Ronaldo’s revelations.

Fernandes walked past his United teammate after arriving with the rest of the Portugal squad ahead of their trip to Qatar, and the midfielder even left Ronaldo – who had attempted to shake hands with his compatriot – hanging before reneging and briefly interacting with his Old Trafford colleague before hastily moving on.

Can we bring out the same body language experts who pick apart every interaction with Meghan and Harry for the below video?

Bruno Fernandes gives Cristiano Ronaldo a frosty reception as Portugal meet for the World Cup. pic.twitter.com/W5rDdMirc8

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) November 15, 2022

While I don’t think it’s bad as some have made it out to be, I do think it’s fair to say that Bruno looks unimpressed and Ronaldo recognises that.

Introspection isn’t something the man with the most international goals of all time is particularly good at. As the game moves on and high, aggressive pressing becomes the norm, Ronaldo’s place in any top side would no longer be a given.

Rather than recognise this, he chooses to attack, with former teammate Wayne Rooney and his looks coming under fire.

Piers raises the topic and then can hardly contain his glee when Ronaldo goes in hard:

NEW: Cristiano Ronaldo reveals why be blanked Gary Neville on the pitch and what he really thinks of Wayne Rooney.@cristiano | @GNev2 | @WayneRooney | @piersmorgan | @TalkTV pic.twitter.com/9PtiHWb2ey

— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) November 14, 2022

What did Rooney say to deserve that? It must have been nasty and cutting and personal.

Except it wasn’t any of those things:

Cristiano Ronaldo has publicly stuck the knife into Wayne Rooney because of this video. This complimentary and entirely realistic perspective on a man who is 37.

Narcissism 101.

pic.twitter.com/5gW32wS1qH

— HLTCO (@HLTCO) November 15, 2022

The latest outburst has really shown Ronaldo’s true colours. Those have been on show for years, to be honest, but with his on-field performance waning they’re now not as easy to stomach.

Let’s consider the views of respected ESPN journalist Mark Ogden:

Three goals, with two coming in a competition — the Europa League — that he tried so hard in the summer to avoid having to play in. United, meanwhile, are seemingly on the rise again under Ten Hag after a decade of mismanagement at all levels. Of the five games they have lost this season, Ronaldo has started three of them…

On the biggest stage [the Qatar World Cup], Ronaldo has a chance to silence his critics, prove his doubters wrong and make United and Ten Hag regret their handling of him this season… But if he was still capable of that, he wouldn’t need to bare his soul in a lengthy televised interview. The reality is that it was a desperate act by a desperate man, trying to find a solution to a problem of his own creation.

The Guardian‘s Barney Ronay was even more forthright in his criticism:

Who could have known, who could have guessed that Cristiano Ronaldo was in fact a wildly solipsistic egomaniac? Were there, you wonder vaguely, some signs, some subtle hints along the way?

…Ronaldo’s problem is that he is no longer an elite-level footballer, that he is instead peripheral to an improving team, and that he appears to have no one around to tell him this.

I wouldn’t put it past Ronaldo having a great World Cup and starring for Portugal. During his career, he has consistently performed when the world’s eyes are upon him.

That doesn’t excuse the fact that he’s thrown his toys out of the cot and created a huge problem for a club he professes to love, and a club that pays him an estimated £500 000-a-week, which makes him the highest-paid player in Manchester United’s history.

According to reports emerging this morning, ten Hag has told the club’s bosses that Ronaldo should not play for the club again and his contract may be torn up.

Unless you’re drinking the Ronaldo Kool-Aid, his legacy also lies in tatters.

[sources:mirror&espn&guardian]