Breaking: Cristiano Ronaldo to miss Manchester United's clash against Leicester City

Cristiano Ronaldo has been ruled out of Manchester United's game against Leicester City later tonight due to illness, as per The Athletic.

The 37-year-old was absent from the from the Manchester United squad as they arrived at The Lowry Hotel earlier on Saturday.

And, now The athletic have confirmed that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner will not play a part against the Foxes due to illness.

Ronaldo's absence will be a major blow for Manchester United manager Ralf Rangnick as he faces a striker crisis with another veteran attacker, Edinson Cavani, also ruled out through injury.

Ronaldo helped his country secure World Cup qualification this week with his United teammate and compatriot Bruno Fernandes scoring twice to beat North Macedonia in the qualifiers.

The former Real Madrid star also featured for his country in the 3-1 play-off semi-final victory over Turkey.

It has been a mixed season for the footballing icon at Old Trafford this season, with the superstar having scored 18 goals in 33 games for the Red Devils across all competitions while producing three assists.

The figures might seem underwhelming for someone of Ronaldo's stature in the game, but without him, Ralf Rangnick's side would have struggled a lot more.

The forward scored a fantastic hat-trick in his last Premier League outing in a 3-2 win over top-four rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

His absence against Leicester City will be welcome news for Brendan Rodgers' side as well as for the likes of Arsenal and Spurs.

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Can Manchester United cope without Cristiano Ronaldo?

Even at the age of 37, Cristiano Ronaldo is still among the best players in the world and can make a lot of difference.

With Ronaldo and Cavani both missing, Rangnick has a huge decision to make and could opt to start either Marcus Rashford or Anthony Elanga up front.