Ex-Manchester City star tells 'superhuman' Cristiano Ronaldo what he must do to return to Manchester United starting XI

Former Manchester City captain Richard Dunne has offered advice to Cristiano Ronaldo on how to return to Manchester United's starting XI. The retired Irishman, who has made over 400 Premier League appearances, believes the Portuguese superstar must stick to what he does best, scoring goals.

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has selected Cristiano Ronaldo in his starting XI only once so far this season (against Brentford on August 13). The five-time Ballon d'Or winner is yet to record a goal or an assist in the Premier League this term.

Ronaldo is struggling to find game time under the Dutch boss. He even remained an unused substitute in the Red Devils' 6-3 defeat against Manchester City.

Referring to Cristiano Ronaldo's current situation at Old Trafford, Dunne said (via the Daily Star):

"He's almost been superhuman throughout his career. And you're trying to tell someone who is used to scoring hat-tricks and ridiculous goals 'You're a 10 or 15-minute man now'. I don't even know if Ronaldo is that."

He added:

"For him, he wants to come on and make an impact. We've seen that when he comes on he wants to shoot all the time. He almost needs to avoid being involved in the build-up. Just stay in that penalty area and allow other players to do the running and the movement."

Dunne further went on to say:

"If you're a centre-half and you've got Ronaldo, you still can't even give him a yard. You're occupied all the time and you're looking for help all the time. He doesn't need to be moving around, because you've already got other players doing that. He just needs to be a little bit more accepting of where he is."

Manchester United legend says Cristiano Ronaldo is 'not the player he was'

Former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney believes his former teammate is no longer the player he was in his early 20s. The Englishman claims that time even catches up to a player of the caliber of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Rooney said (via Sport Bible):

"Cristiano... him and Lionel Messi are two of the greatest players to ever play the game, but ultimately, time catches up with us all. He's obviously not the player he was when he was 22 or 23, for instance. It's a tough one for him."

The Englishman added:

"Knowing him, it'll be very difficult for him to sit on the bench. I'm sure if he stays patient, his chance will come and, again, it's then obviously him taking those chances and trying to force his way back in."

Manchester United are set to face Everton next in the Premier League at Goodison Park. It remains to be seen whether Ten Hag will choose to deploy Cristiano Ronaldo in the encounter.