Manchester United interim manager, Ralf Rangnick, has said Cristiano Ronaldo‘s reaction to being taken off against Brentford is not new.
Ronaldo was substituted in the 71st minute during the 3-1 Premier League win on Wednesday along with Mason Greenwood.
Harry Maguire and Marcus Rashford both came on as United look to see out their victory.
When asked if he saw the situation as a challenge to his authority, Rangnick said: “I didn’t at all see or interpret that as if he was challenging me, he just showed too emotionally that he wasn’t happy to be replaced.
“This was not the first time. If you have a look at the moment when Sir Alex replaced him or other coaches replaced him in the past, it was actually pretty similar. It shows that in the end, it has nothing to do with the manager at the time, it’s about his own ambition and desire to stay on the pitch.
Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick believes too much has been made of the fact he subbed off Cristiano Ronaldo against Brentford and it was a decision that was justified in the end
“But it’s a team sport and for us, it’s important to make sure we get the most out of each game, the maximum points. Then it’s a decision of each manager of what do we need right now to secure the game, to make sure we win it and what kind of weapons do we need on the pitch to score on the counter-attack.
“I’m not somebody who says afterwards that everything was perfect, but in this case, everything I hoped would result for that decision, they were confirmed in the end.
“If at one stage, Cristiano will also be maybe a manager himself in a couple of years, then he will have the same experience himself.
“I don’t blame him for that, but any manager would wish it shouldn’t be too emotional, more so in front of the TV cameras. I don’t think this will be to the benefit of anyone – not to his benefit, the benefit of his team-mates or the others – but in the end, it’s an emotional game. Players are being emotional, but I didn’t take it personally at all in that moment.
“He would have loved to stay on the pitch and play on, I can understand that because he thought he would have been able to score one or two goals. But with the very disappointed experience we had at Villa Park, to me it was logically that we had to do it in a different way this time.”
