PACK YER BAGS
United start process of sacking Ronnie for breach of contract
MANCHESTER UNITED have begun the process of sacking Cristiano Ronaldo following his bombshell TV interview.
United have taken legal advice and it is understood lawyers have told the club they have grounds to terminate Ronaldo’s deal for breach of contract.
The Portugal superstar accused the Red Devils’ hierarchy of trying to force him out and claimed he had no respect for manager Erik ten Hag.
United are confident they have grounds for cancelling Ronaldo’s deal, which has six months left to run, for bringing the club into disrepute.
The 37-year-old and his representatives are
certain to take legal action to counter United’s move, which will cost the former Real Madrid and Juventus forward around £16million in lost wages.
A statement yesterday said: “Manchester United has this morning initiated appropriate steps in response to Cristiano Ronaldo’s recent media interview.
“We will not be making further comment until this process reaches its conclusion.”
Although United would not expand on what constitutes “appropriate steps”, sources have indicated they are looking to impose the ultimate sanction on Ronaldo.
Among the many controversial comments made in the interview, Ronaldo claimed there had been “zero progress” at United since he left them for Real in 2009.
United’s hierarchy – comprising owner Joel Glazer, chief executive Richard Arnold, football director John Murtough and boss Ten Hag – have been locked in talks over how to deal with Ronaldo in the wake of his appearance on TalkTV, in which he claimed the club “betrayed” him.
After taking such a hardline stance on Ronaldo when he refused to come on against Tottenham and left Old Trafford before the final whistle in United’s 2-0 win, Ten Hag (above) has told bosses there is no way the star can play for him again.
United’s players do not expect to see Ronaldo again after the World Cup, with the squad having grown tired of his whining and posturing over his perceived mistreatment, according to sources.
After refusing to come off the bench against Spurs (Ronaldo heading down the tunnel before the end, below), he was left out of the Premier League trip to Chelsea last month as punishment, with Ten Hag claiming he had to take such action to maintain discipline within his squad.
Although the Portuguese took to Instagram to offer a semi-apology for refusing to come on against the north Londoners, blaming it on “the heat of the moment”, the controversial interview has ended any hope of him being welcomed back into the fold.