Ronaldo wasn't the problem. The problem was the fact that we'd sold him without bringing in a recognised striker. We still don't have one.
Ronaldo wasn’t the problem….
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik @Rood and Imran @Annihilate Now! start with the good news by celebrating Manchester United Women's emphatic FA Cup win over Spurs at Wembley and the future of manager Marc Skinner.
Then it's the bad news and the ever worsening form of our Men with losses to Arsenal and Palace.
Finally the main debate - ETH Out now or keep him until the end of the season - if not longer. Are you Team Nik or Team Imran?
Hojlund? We haven't seen much of him but he's here.
Well we have bigger problems now and he's not the one to be blamed.. this time.
God forbid that cnut was a problem
I guess what I meant was established. Hojilund looks good, mind you.
Almost everyone in that dressing room was or still is a problem.
The problem Ronaldo has is that he can't accept that he just isn't very good anymore. Father time is undefeated no matter who you are. I'd go as far to say that getting him out of the dressing room was a great thing and our current problems are due to the fact that more than him need to leave before it gets better. At least Henderson is gone and now, thank God, it looks like Sancho is done. That's two more. Still probably another few to go like Maguire (who is professional but creates an issue with his overinflated ego) and Martial (who is just a lost cause at this point). Replace Sancho, Maguire and Martial with talented players who have a good mentality and the club will be well on the way back on an upwards trajectory. ETH needs to be allowed do what Arteta did at Arsenal.
He was part of the problem at the time… people are thinking he wasn’t the problem is because we still have tons of problems which are all different. We’ve not dealt with all the other problems
You can have high standards when you're putting in high levels of performance and helping the team. If you're refusing to do what the manager tells you then you're just a bellend who's overstayed his welcome.
Being there himself on daily basis, what's the odd that Phelan knows more about dressing room than fans?
Unless of course Phelan has a motive to lie, which I don't see it for now.
Unless of course Phelan has a motive to lie, which I don't see it for now.
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Keane's last full season was statistically excellent- a bit like Ronaldo's goals in 21-22- but the team had to adjust to accommodate him with Fletcher often doing a lot of his running. Keane's tackles and passing stats were really outstanding that year and he had fantastic big game performances at Anfield and Highbury. It was his best season for over two years but yeah, the time was running out. Players get old
A few months after Ronaldo left those lazy so-and-so's won a trophy, got to the final of another competition and finished 3rd. How's that for application?
He was never the problem nor the solution.
Ronaldo was part of the problem. Doesn't mean it was only him that was the issue. It doesn't have to be all or nothing.
To this day I'm still so thankful for him being true to himself. A dickhead narcissitic ahole who doesn't give a shit about anything but himself. So we could get rid of him. Thank God I don't have to watch him playing for us anymore. I simply can't describe how happy I was when that selfish twat finally fecked off.
He obviously does.
How relevant his insights are in this case is debatable, though. Phelan was brought back under Ole. Many would say this was an attempt to restore Fergie era values, etc. Bringing Ronaldo back was monumentally stupid, but in line with the same (insane) idea of trying to roll back the years, bring back the glory associated with Fergie, etc.
Once Ole was sacked, it was obvious that Phelan didn't work very closely with Rangnick, and he was let go when ETH arrived.
Phelan doesn't recognize at all - as far as I can see - that Ronaldo was over the hill as a player. To the point that when he was expected to perform like...well, any other player under ETH, he looked utterly lost. Under Ole and the caretaker who followed him, he was largely accommodated - to the obvious detriment of the team. ETH didn't do that - and Ronaldo looked as shite as he actually was at the highest level as a result.
Point being that it may very well be that Ronaldo - rightly - expected more from his teammates than they delivered, but he wasn't in a position to do so as a player, as a teammate (because he was miles off the actual standard himself on the pitch - and he was delusional enough not to realize this). Phelan doesn't seem to realize this - or, at least, he doesn't acknowledge it. His personal relationship with Ronaldo may have something to do with it, I don't know.
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Aye, his individual stats were good, but his change in style didn't suit the team dynamic. His hips were so fecked even though he had already adjusted his game to take a lot of the running out. I read somewhere he was on painkillers for a long time because of his hips and hamstrings around then, not sure if that's true, could even have been him that said it. But, it's telling he only only played about 10 games after he left anyway.Keane's last full season was statistically excellent- a bit like Ronaldo's goals in 21-22- but the team had to adjust to accommodate him with Fletcher often doing a lot of his running. Keane's tackles and passing stats were really outstanding that year and he had fantastic big game performances at Anfield and Highbury. It was his best season for over two years but yeah, the time was running out. Players get old
Must be confusing him with the real GOAT, Ronalod.
We replaced him with Wout freaking Weghorst and became a better team because of it. He was a problem.
Phelan should just enjoy his Utd payout, what a load of bullshit.
totally disagree, he was 100 % the problem , thought he was bigger than the team.
When he went to the slimeball Morgan, his place n the club was untenable.
When he went to the slimeball Morgan, his place n the club was untenable.
Exactly that having high standards and also playing shite won't add up in the end.
Ronaldo was a problem. The problem of low standards is still a problem.
Both can be true and probably is
Both can be true and probably is
Having high standards while playing like a piece of shit. That's my sense of humor.
Nothing wrong with high standards he went from playing with legends like scholes carrick Rio and Vida to some of the shit show we had then always be a legend because of 2006 to 2009 viva ronaldo
He was a problem on the pitch. It actually got to the stage that he was not only failing to be the player he was even at Juventus or in his first season with us, but he was actually a liability. If he was liable to smash in 30 goals and perform well it would be a different consideration, often clubs and managers will tolerate things and make certain concessions but Ronaldo lost the plot in all departments. He was no longer fit for purpose. His attitude and fall out with the manager might have been the final straw but ultimately that didn't just arise from nowhere, his influence had dwindled.
Ronaldo was not only talking about lack of hunger among young players, but also on the level of anything else that could add to why he, Ronaldo, did not get to compete for silverware, while knocking his head in the wall over why he didn't sign for City.
If he was not the problem, he was certainly a problem and contributed greatly to a divided dressing room. Lingard described the dressing room as "a disaster".
If he was not the problem, he was certainly a problem and contributed greatly to a divided dressing room. Lingard described the dressing room as "a disaster".
Wouldn't most have thought that he would have been an ok signing if he had stayed just one season? I guess giving him a 2 year contract was a mistake?
You can believe Phelan, or you can believe your own eyes and facts.
Ronaldo was already struggling, but ended-up being an effective goal-scorer (as evidenced by number of goals scored) in 2021/2022 season, but he definitely ruined team spirit along t he way, which Phelan actually doesn't dispute, he just makes Ronaldo sound like the unintentional villain or misunderstood hero.
When EtH arrived, however - it was an entirely different story. Ronaldo was not even effective, anymore. His legs were gone, he couldn't run, he couldn't score. He was done at the top level and that's why nobody, but Saudi, really wanted to sign him when he burst out of United. EtH was 100% correct to not start him, and Ronaldo publicly undermining him only damaged Ronaldo's legacy at this club. He should have controlled his ego and not done it.
All in all, United would have done way better in 2021/2022, if we didn't get emotional and didn't last-second sign him. Then again, maybe we would still have Ole, if Ronaldo didn't ruin the team, and maybe we'd not finally gotten a competent manager in EtH, so there's a chance Ronaldo did us a favor, by letting us hit rock bottom
Ronaldo was already struggling, but ended-up being an effective goal-scorer (as evidenced by number of goals scored) in 2021/2022 season, but he definitely ruined team spirit along t he way, which Phelan actually doesn't dispute, he just makes Ronaldo sound like the unintentional villain or misunderstood hero.
When EtH arrived, however - it was an entirely different story. Ronaldo was not even effective, anymore. His legs were gone, he couldn't run, he couldn't score. He was done at the top level and that's why nobody, but Saudi, really wanted to sign him when he burst out of United. EtH was 100% correct to not start him, and Ronaldo publicly undermining him only damaged Ronaldo's legacy at this club. He should have controlled his ego and not done it.
All in all, United would have done way better in 2021/2022, if we didn't get emotional and didn't last-second sign him. Then again, maybe we would still have Ole, if Ronaldo didn't ruin the team, and maybe we'd not finally gotten a competent manager in EtH, so there's a chance Ronaldo did us a favor, by letting us hit rock bottom
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By who? You?
Yes. And I'm kind of a big deal.
High standards in terms of spa facilities, it should read. Certainly not in terms of football performances and team ethics.
He wasn't the only problem but he was a problem.
He missed pre season as he was looking for a move, and when he returned and played badly he didn't accept that and behaved poorly. He did it to himself.
He missed pre season as he was looking for a move, and when he returned and played badly he didn't accept that and behaved poorly. He did it to himself.
Ronaldo is the problem. He left and we started playing better.
Should have taken Sancho with him. Bonus points for grabbing Martial too.
Should have taken Sancho with him. Bonus points for grabbing Martial too.
Ronaldo couldn’t perform to his standards so he got pissed off, but no one else could perform to his standards, including the manager. So everyone is pissed off with Ronaldo for highlighting the fact that our standards are crap apart from dalot? Have i got that right?
Ronaldo was a problem, Low standards was/is a problem. The problem that Ronaldo thought he wasn't a problem was another problem and the fact that people think Ronaldo wasn't a problem is another problem.
Ah, alright. Sorry.
Yeah, maybe. Phelan was there when Ronaldo was Player of the Year and included in PL team of the year. And you can see from that season, several player had shite attitude. It has nothing to do with "accommodating Ronaldo" as a striker, when Maguire and Shaw were utter shite, Pogba just being Pogba, so did JLingz. And enough said about Rashford.
It's shown that our results were equally or even more shite when Ronaldo was absent on that season.
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Wasn't the ultimate problem but he was a major part of the problem and his return helped to expose the sheer level of incompetency in the club and got a few idiots in high places at the club fired so I'm happy for that at least. I recently read an article that the Guardian did on the debacle at Juventus and like with us, the straw that broke the camel's back for them was their signing Ronaldo from Real Madrid. From that point on it was downhill for them financially and competitively as it was with us. The toxic combination of his astronomical wages, massive ego and sharp decline in production and ability essentially single-handedly regressed two top level clubs in the space of 4 years. All-time great football player but one of the worst all-round people I've seen in the sport.