Nemanja Vidic said that Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure from Manchester United helped Erik ten Hag relax and plan for the future of the Red Devils. The Portuguese football icon ended the 2021-2022 season with 24 goals in 38 games across all competitions, becoming Man United’s top scorer. However, Ronaldo’s playing time under Ten Hag was limited, starting only four times in the Premier League. Ronaldo’s clear desire to play in the UEFA Champions League, along with a lack of opportunities at Manchester United, led to his departure from the club under a mutual agreement in November last year.
It cannot be denied that Ronaldo’s fiery interview with journalist Piers Morgan at the beginning of that month was a major reason for his departure, in which he criticized Ten Hag and others, forcing Manchester United to terminate his contract. According to Vidic, the comments from the five-time Ballon d’Or winner made it easier for Ten Hag to decide to end his relationship with the player. The former Serbian international player believes that Ronaldo’s departure helped Manchester United play more cohesively as a team. Vidic also made a general criticism of the 38-year-old star’s work ethic and lack of dynamism in recent years.
Vidic shared with Rio Ferdinand on the Five podcast via Manchester Evening News: “I think Man United’s departure from Cristiano Ronaldo helped Ten Hag a lot in rebuilding the team. What Cristiano Ronaldo did made it easier for him to leave.
In general, he (Ten Hag) was patient with Ronaldo from the start of the season and in the end, he got what he wanted. That is Manchester United playing more smoothly over the past few years, not just serving one person, as well as Ronaldo’s level not being enough to compete at the highest level anymore.” Vidic retired in 2016 and played alongside Ronaldo in 131 games in the first phase of his career at Old Trafford. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo joined Al Nassr in January on a two-and-a-half-year contract. Many saw this as a step back for him, although Ronaldo still expects to win every competition in Saudi Arabia.
However, that did not happen. While Manchester United won the League Cup in February and prepared for the FA Cup final against Manchester City, Al Nassr continued a season without a trophy. Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates were ineffective as their club lost 1-3 to Al Ittihad in the Saudi Super Cup semi-final in January. Most recently, he was the captain in the 0-1 loss to Al Wehda in the semi-finals of the Crown Prince Cup in February.
