FOOTBALL
‘The best decision I made – Ronaldo On Man United Return
Cristiano Ronaldo is convinced that the decision to return to Manchester United is the best move he has made in his career.
The five times Ballon d’Or winner had a dream start to his second stint at Old Trafford as he bagged a brace against Newcastle United in front of a jam-packed Old Trafford audience and steered his side to a commanding 4-1 victory.
The 36-year-old rejoined the club twelve years after trading the Manchester United shirt for a Real Madrid one.
He was playing for Serie A giants Juventus and had a year left on his contract when he decided to go back to the club where he earned global stardom.
Manchester United paid £12.86 million in transfer fees to Juventus for securing Ronaldo’s services. Juve could receive £6.85 million more upon fulfillment of some criteria.
“It’s the best decision I’ve made. It was the right time,” Ronaldo said in an interview with Telefoot.
“I want to make history, help Manchester to have great results and win trophies.”
Sir Alex Ferguson had signed Cristiano Ronaldo for Manchester United in 2003 after seeing him play for Sporting CP in a friendly match.
The legendary Man United manager was so impressed with what he saw in that match, he didn’t hesitate to pay £12.26 million for the 18-year-old.
The amount might seem inconsequential today, but it was an unusually high sum back then for a teenager.
In fact, Ronaldo was the most expensive teenager in the history of England football, when he had signed for the Red Devils for the first time in 2003.
In his 6 year stay at Manchester United, Ronaldo played 292 matches for the club and scored 118 goals.
His trophy cabinet included three Premier League medals, a Champions League medal, an FA Cup medal, and Ballon d’Or crest when he joined Real Madrid in a world record transfer fee of £80 million.
He committed the next nine years of his career to Los Blancos and helped the La Liga giants to win four Champions Leagues and two La Ligas.
During his time in Spain, he established himself as one of the greatest footballers of all time, having won the Ballon d’Or four more times.
Now, Ronaldo has walked into a Manchester United team that has been trophyless in each of the last three seasons.
But, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has built a formidable team over that period and now, Manchester United looks to be in its strongest position since Sir Alex Ferguson left in 2012.
The mercurial number seven will be playing a pivotal role this season for the Red Devils and he has an exciting team around that can help him perform at his absolute best.
Because of his age, Ronaldo will not be occupying his natural wide position.
As we have seen in the first match, he will operate as a striker with the likes of Jadon Sancho, Mason Greenwood, and Marcus Rashford supporting him from the flanks.
Behind him, he will have the creative engine comprised of Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba.
Ronaldo’s return to Manchester will be a cherished memory for Man United fans, and what will make it even more special, is him leading United to silverware this season.
Based on what we have seen in his first outing, an in-form Ronaldo will make Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men the team to beat.
Georgina Rodriguez made a huge claim on the future of her husband and star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, in Football. In a brief interaction with a host recently, Rodriguez was asked about the time left for Cristiano to make an impact at the highest level. Georgina looked honest in her approach to the question of the host and claimed something the fans would not love to hear.
Georgina claimed that the Portugal star has maybe one year more from him at the highest level. She felt that Ronaldo might play two more years before retiring and not more than that. She was however not sure if he would play for just one or two years and added that the Al Nassr star could also play more than that.
Watch the video of Georgina Rodriguez here –
🚨🎙️| Georgina Rodriguez on Cristiano Ronaldo’s future at Paris Fashion Week yesterday:
“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know.”
(via @ArobaseGiovanny)pic.twitter.com/4dxw2j5DuC
— Pubity Sport (@pubitysport) March 3, 2024
“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know,” said Rodriguez in the little chat she had with the host. The video has gone viral on X and the fans have started sharing it on different platforms. Some of the fans feel that Georgina might be right, while others feel that she could be wrong, given the fitness and longevity of the star player.
Legacy of Cristiano Ronaldo
On the 5th of February, Ronaldo celebrated his 39th birthday. He is currently one of the oldest players in the world. In the past, players at this age would have retired way back. But the fitness and consistency of Ronaldo make him play the sport as long as he wishes. In his career so far, Ronaldo has won many major leagues for Portugal and league teams like Real Madrid, Al Nassr, and Manchester United.
With United, Portugal won some major leagues like the FA Cup and the Champions League. With Real Madrid, the 39-year-old won the leagues like the UCL, Copa Del Rey and La Liga. He won it three consecutive times for Real Madrid. For Portugal, Cristiano had a huge contribution to Portugal. He has the most number of appearances and goals for an international team and won the Euro 2016 with Portugal.
England and Real Madrid player Jude Bellingham was slapped with a Red Card during the La Liga game against Valencia. In the game, the home team, Valencia was leading by 2-0 after 30 minutes before Madrid scored in the injury time of the first half. Vinicius Junior opened the scoring for Madrid while Hugo Duro (27′) and Roman Yaremchuk (30′) scored a goal each.
In the 76th minute, Junior scored an equalizer to keep the team in the game. However, in the injury time of the second half, Bellingham was given a red card as he argued with the referee against calling it a full-time before he could score. In reply, the match official decided to slap the England international with a Red Card. The team coach Carlo Ancelotti wasn’t happy with the verdict as the Three Lions player was making a pass at the time.
Jude Bellingham verbally abusing officials and other footballers at the slightest provocation needs to be talked about more. It’s embarrassing he gets applauded by Real Madrid Fans.
Mason Greenwood should’ve allowed La Liga to deal with this simp. pic.twitter.com/ixYSw6YxaC
— Herman Facundo© (@hermanfacundo_7) March 3, 2024
“I think what’s just happened is unprecedented. It’s never happened to me,” Ancelotti told reporters.
“We had possession of the ball and the match should have been finished when Valencia had the ball.
“What bothers us is the red card for Bellingham because he didn’t say anything insulting. He was frustrated of course,” said Ancelotti, adding that Bellingham had used a common English swearword when telling the referee it was a goal.
We are annoyed with Jude Bellingham’s Red Card: Carlo Ancelotti
“We were annoyed with Bellingham’s red card. He didn’t say any insults. He said in English ‘it’s a f—ing goal,’ but he was just saying what we were all thinking … [The referee] allowed play to continue. I think he made a mistake.”
“[Bellingham] was clear in what he said,” Ancelotti added. “He was quite vehement [in his reaction] but that’s normal, after what happened. It wasn’t an insult, not at all.”
FOOTBALL
PL 2023-24: MCFC vs MUFC Dream11 Prediction, Playing XI, Fantasy League Today’s Captain, Vice-Captain, and more for Manchester derby
Super Sunday is set to witness the Manchester Derby in the Premier League 2023-24. The match between Manchester City (MCFC) and Manchester United (MUFC) is set to take place in Etihad Stadium, the home ground of Manchester City. The two teams have had a contrasting journey in the league till now. The fortunes of City changed ever since Pep Guardiola took over the club as the manager.
While the home side are placed in the second position in the points table currently, United are in the sixth place in the points table. In their previous encounter, City hammered Luton Town by 6-2 in the FA Cup. United have shown massive improvements in the last few weeks after not having a good start to their campaign. United were involved in a thrilling game where they beat Nottingham Forrest by 1-0 in their last game.
Both teams feature some of the best players in the world. The likes of Julian Alvarez, Erling Haaland, Marcus Rashford, Kevin De Bruyne, Bruno Fernandes, Casemiro, and others would be taking part in the match. Manchester City will start the match as the favourites, given their record in the ongoing league so far and the match taking place in their home. United with their improved record can challenge the home side.
MCFC vs MUFC – Match Details
Match – Manchester City (MCFC) vs Manchester United (MUFC), Premier League 2023-24
Venue – Etihad Stadium, Manchester
Date and Time – 3rd March 2024, 21:00 IST
Live Coverage – Star Sports Network and Disney plus Hot Star
MCFC vs MUFC – Head-to-Head
Both the teams from Manchester have a rich history in the sport. they have been up against each other in 191 instances. In as many games, Manchester United have been historically the better side with 78 wins to their name. City have managed to win 60 wins, as 53 games ended in a draw. In the last five games between the two sides in the Premier League, City have won four of the five games.
MCFC vs MUFC – Likely XI
Manchester City: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Ake, Akanji, Rodri, De Bruyne, Silva, Alvarez, Haaland, Foden
Manchester United: Onana, Dalot, Varane, Lindelof, Amrabat, Casemiro, Manioo, McTominay, Fernandes, Rashford, Garnacho
MCFC vs MUFC – Fantasy XI
Grand League Team
Goal Keeper – E Moraes
Defenders – M Akanji, K Walker, H Maguire
Mid Fielders – Kevin De Bruyne, B Fernandes, R Hernandez, Casemiro
Forwards – E Haaland (VC), J Alvarez, M Rashford (C)
MCFC vs MUFC, PL 2024 Dream11, Grand League (Source: X)
Head-to-Head Team
Goal Keeper – S Ortega
Defenders – M Akanji, K Walker, R Varane
Mid Fielders – K De Bruyne (C), B Fernandes (VC), B Silva, Casemiro
Forwards – E Haaland, J Alvarez, M Rashford
MCFC vs MUFC, PL 2024 Dream11, Head to Head (Source: X)
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