Five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo has shined after his high profile return to Old Trafford, scoring an impressive five goals in seven games across competitions for Man United.
Despite having the Portuguese maestro, the English giants have struggled to win matches in recent times. Many are now blaming CR7 for their disoriented campaign.
Cristiano Ronaldo supporters have slammed Sky Sports pundit and former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher’s claim that the football superstar might not be able to make it to a combined Manchester United and Liverpool XI because Jurgen Klopp would never select him.
While some fans mocked him for not having the “intelligence” to realise how good Ronaldo was, others accused him of “smoking devil’s cabbage”.
On the other hand, some termed his choice as ludicrous, a section of social media users asked him “what he had in his dinner”, considering he was dropping arguably the best player in the world from the squad.
Greenwood leads the line for @Carra23…????
Maguire and Ronaldo in for @GNev2… ????
The #MNF pair pick their Liverpool x Manchester United combined XI's ???? pic.twitter.com/0m9as95PCI
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 18, 2021
Have I actually just seen Jamie Carragher leave out Ronaldo in a joint United/Liverpool XI… ludicrous.
— gethin hicks (@hicks_gethin) October 18, 2021
— Gerald (@KoningGerald70) October 19, 2021
Instead of picking Ronaldo in the playing 11, Carragher opted for United forward Mason Greenwood, whom he dubbed as a “superstar”.
“I’m a massive Greenwood fan, I think he’s a superstar, I really do”, Carragher told Sky Sports.
“How can you not put Ronaldo in, in terms of what he’s done, legendary figure? I’m talking about actually right now, today, I’d have to have Greenwood”.
While the 43-year-old went for Greenwood, it is worth mentioning that on current form, there’s not much to differentiate between the two strikers.
In fact, Greenwood is still behind Ronaldo, as the England star has four goals this season, while the Portugal skipper has five. Yet, Carragher was confident that the 20-year-old could feature in the combined 11 and Ronaldo couldn’t.
“[Roberto] Firmino got a hat-trick for Liverpool at the weekend and has done really well but going back last season, and this season Greenwood is a superstar and I had to find a place for him in there”, the former Liverpool vice-captain added.
When presenter David Jones asked Carragher whether current Reds boss Jurgen Klopp would select Ronaldo in his team, he replied in the negative.
“No, I don’t think Jurgen Klopp would pick Ronaldo if he was picking what we’re picking now”, Carragher said.
Despite the criticism, Ronaldo has quietly gone about his business in England. He has tried to bring a semblance of normalcy to the once mighty club, which has struggled with consistency in the last few years.
United are once again having problems with their consistency.
After making an excellent start, they have now failed to win their last three matches. The 4-2 loss to Leicester City during the weekend could be considered as one of the sour points of their disappointing 2021-22 campaign.
