Eurosport –
EXCLUSIVE! Former Manchester United player Paul Parker thinks Cristiano Ronaldo should act like a man over his transfer to Real Madrid.
“It is plainly obvious that Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t want to come back to Manchester United, but he isn’t man enough to say so.
It is like somebody who wants a divorce but isn’t brave enough to start proceedings. He has made no attempt to justify his position to the fans, the manager or anybody.
He has made comments about wanting Carlos Queiroz to get the Portugal job, but he is strangely quiet when it comes to clarifying his own situation.
He is just sitting there hoping Real Madrid strike a deal, and is dreading having to go back and face the music.
I think a lot of United fans have been very upset by his behaviour. He took years to win them over with his performances, but will have to start from scratch again if he does return.
Even from a neutral point of view I don’t think it is the right time for him to move. The majority of great players are associated with a particular club and have shown loyalty over their career.
Ronaldo has shown no loyalty whatsoever and I think it will stop him going down as one of the greats. Will he be able to score 40 goals a season in Madrid? I very much doubt it.
Sir Alex Ferguson took a major gamble on Ronaldo, bringing him through at a young age and sticking with him when he didn’t appear to be progressing.
He made him physically and mentally stronger – Sir Alex made Ronaldo like he made Beckham, Scholes and Giggs. No other manager could have done the job Fergie has done, and Ronaldo has let him down badly.
I don’t think there will be much sympathy for Ronaldo in the Old Trafford dressing room. Players usually understand if somebody is looking to move to a bigger club or get a better contract.
But Ronaldo is already one of the highest-paid players at the biggest team in England and the European champions. Why would he leave for a club that were nowhere near in the Champions League?
These kind of things happen and I think the United players will be professional enough to get on with it if he comes back, but they will be disappointed that he wants to walk away.
Although I hold the player ultimately responsible, his agent has not helped. Agents do not always work in the players’ best interests because they get a big payday every time there is a transfer.
You have to hope Ronaldo will see sense, and in any case there should be no rush to sell him as he has four years left on his contract. But you worry that he could upset the harmony in the dressing room if he doesn’t get what he wants.
In my playing days players looked to move clubs, but they kept their mouths shut and things were played out internally, not in the papers.
If you acted up, you went straight in the reserves. But clubs cannot afford to do that these days as it could damage the value of the player. You have to wonder whether there is any point having contracts any more.
I think United will cope without Ronaldo. Sir Alex will look to bring in another forward who can score 20 goals like Dimitar Berbatov, and of course more of the burden will fall on Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney.
You get the feeling that Rooney has coasted a little bit through the last two seasons and allowed Ronaldo to carry him.
He will really have to step up to the plate and prove his quality if Ronaldo goes, because the onus will be squarely on Rooney to inspire the United attack.”
