Erik ten Hag admits Cristiano Ronaldo was his FOURTH choice as Manchester United captain
Erik ten Hag disclosed that Cristiano Ronaldo was his fourth option for captain after giving the 37-year-old the armband during Manchester United’s loss at Villa Park.
After a difficult summer in which Ronaldo made little attempt to hide his desire to quit the club, followed by his walking down the tunnel before the final whistle at Tottenham last month, the forward was appointed United’s captain for the game against Aston Villa, raising more than a few eyebrows.
Ronaldo was named as Manchester United captain since regular captain Harry Maguire was on the bench and vice-captain Bruno Fernandes was unavailable due to suspension.
Ronaldo may have been appointed as captain to encourage his colleagues with his individual excellence on the field, but he ultimately failed to set the example for the other players.
The former Real Madrid great was unable to have a significant influence on the game, and his most notable moment occurred when he collided with Villa defender Tyrone Mings and just avoided being sent off.
Ten Hag disclosed that he considered giving the captain’s armband to summer signing Casemiro owing to his leadership abilities, but finally chose the Ballon d’Or winner due to Casemiro’s lack of English.
The Dutch manager outlined his reasoning for assigning Ronaldo the captaincy following United’s fourth loss in the Premier League this season.
“Harry Maguire is on the bench, our captain of the club. Then it is about David de Gea who is a leader but is a goalie and is far away from the outfield.
“Then Casemiro is the leader but he is not speaking perfect English so then Cristiano is the leader.”
Erik ten Hag admits Cristiano Ronaldo was his FOURTH choice as Manchester United captain
