Cristiano Ronaldo Tried To Change His Man United Narrative But He Can't Escape Reality

Cristiano Ronaldo's attempted take-down of Erik ten Hag and Manchester United in his interview with Piers Morgan feels like a desperate attempt to escape or at least distort reality.

The reality is that he is no longer close to being the best footballer in the world. He is still incredibly talented but also very limited.

Ronaldo needs a manager to build a team around him in order for him to look anything like the great player he once was.

Ten Hag clearly believes that United are better tactically and more functional without Ronaldo. The stats back that up.

The reality is that Ronaldo was set to leave Old Trafford relatively quietly by his standards in 2023, either in January or June.

When that inevitably happened, Ronaldo would almost certainly be forced to join club smaller than United.

That step down would naturally look to outsiders like Ronaldo was no longer good enough to play at the top level. It would look like he had failed at United.

But Ronaldo's sensational bomb drops in his interview with Morgan now mean he can leave Old Trafford in a spectacular storm, rather than under a modest cloud.

The story can now be that United forced him out in a political power move, rather than simply that the manager did not think he was worthy of a regular starting place.

Ronaldo can tell people that United failed him, not the other way round.

READ MORE: Cristiano Ronaldo Slams Erik Ten Hag As Well As Man United's "Zero" Progress Since 2013

Cristiano Ronaldo pictured during his interview with Piers Morgan

Piers Morgan Uncensored

It must be hard for Ronaldo to cope with his current status at Old Trafford because he had unquestionably been one of the two best players on the planet for a full decade.

He will have become accustomed to his god-like status.

So it must be difficult for Ronaldo to swallow when a mere mortal like Ten Hag - who never even played international soccer - decides that he is no longer good enough to start every week for a United side that are a top-four EPL team at best.

But that is the reality and, as good as Ronaldo was, he is now 37 and thus his decline as a player will naturally and inevitably continue.

Ronaldo must choose his next club very carefully if he is to ensure that the next chapter of his career will have a narrative that he deems acceptable.

Cristiano Ronaldo has only started four of Manchester United's first 15 EPL games this season

IMAGO/PA Images/David Davies