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Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo, as reported by The Athletic, not only walked down the tunnel but also left Old Trafford while his team's game was on against Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday, October 19.
The Portuguese forward cut a frustrating figure on the bench as United dominated Spurs at Old Trafford. He was an unused substitute on the night, which might have invoked such a reaction from the veteran forward.
A seemingly irritated Ronaldo walked down the tunnel in the 90th minute (with four minutes of injury time still left to play), leaving fans and pundits in disbelief with his behavior.
Reports have now indicated that after walking down the tunnel, instead of waiting in the dressing room for the team, he left the stadium.
The Manchester United forward has mostly been used as a substitute under Erik ten Hag this season, which has irritated the forward on multiple instances.
Just last week (October 16), he was subbed off against Newcastle United in the 72nd minute. He shook his head in disagreement and disgruntledly trudged off the pitch.
When asked about the five-time Ballon d'Or's behavior in the game against Spurs, Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag said:
“I don’t pay attention today, we deal with that tomorrow. I want to focus on this team, it was a magnificent performance from all 11 players. I have to correct myself, it was a performance on the subs who came on. A squad performance.”
Ronaldo left the stadium during Manchester United's friendly against Rayo Vallecano
Ronaldo pulled a similar stunt in the pre-season when he drove away from the stadium after being subbed off at half-time.
He was taken off in the pre-season game after 45 minutes and then caught on camera leaving the stadium while his team was playing the game.
Ten Hag had questioned the actions back then as well, saying:
“I certainly don’t condone this. This is unacceptable, for everyone. We are a team and you have to stay until the end.”
Ronaldo has scored two goals and assisted one in 12 games this season.
