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Jose Mourinho’s old comments about Cristiano Ronaldo have resurfaced amidst the uncertainty surrounding the striker at Manchester United. He stated, back in 2008, that the legendary forward should be competing for the biggest trophies in football.
The Portuguese made the 30-man Ballon d’Or shortlist for 2022 despite having a poor season by his standards. He has been nominated for the award for a record 18th consecutive time and is the only United player to make the list.
He scored 24 goals and had six assists in 38 matches for Manchester United across all competitions last season, at the age of 37.
Still, Ronaldo is not happy simply because his team is further away from winning trophies than it was before his move last summer (via Metro). The five-time Ballon d’Or winner still has a strong desire to win trophies.
Back in 2008, Jose Mourinho claimed that the forward's individual achievements did not mean much until he won some trophies. He said:
“I don't think he can be a player without a big trophy. Clearly what Ronaldo did in the season was magnificent. I think by far, or by some distance, he has been the best player in the Premiership but for me, the best is always a winner because football is a collective sport.”
He added:
“If Man United do something important by winning the Premiership or by winning the Champions League I would say – and not just me, the whole football world – give the trophy to him."
Cristiano Ronaldo looks set to stay at Manchester United despite rumors of unrest
Cristiano Ronaldo has been involved in a long transfer saga this summer and was adamant about leaving the club for Champions League football (via The Times).
However, it now seems that the striker is set to stay, with Erik ten Hag recently claiming the following:
"That is your assumption [that Ronaldo wants to leave] -- that is not what he is telling me. I deal with the players we have and we plan with him for this season and we are happy with him and we have to fit him into the team so he has to come at the right fitness levels so that he can do the job that we expect him to do.”
He added:
"In every press conference we already confirmed that he is in our plans. We plan with him so we also plan around him."
Of course, the striker can still prove to be crucial at his advanced age, especially because Manchester United do not have too many goalscorers in the squad.
Apart from the Portuguese, only Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial are capable of playing up top. However, both players have been in poor form recently and will be hoping to take inspiration from a strong pre-season campaign.
Martial, though, suffered a hamstring injury ahead of the first match of the season last week. Hence, Manchester United are quite short in the striking position.
