November 12th 2024.
When Cristiano Ronaldo made his highly-anticipated return to Manchester United in the summer of 2021, it was Ole Gunnar Solskjaer who was at the helm of the Red Devils. However, little did he know that his decision to bring back the legendary Portuguese forward would come back to haunt him.
In a recent interview, Solskjaer revealed that he was warned about the potential pitfalls of signing Ronaldo by his assistant at the time, Kieran McKenna, who is currently the manager of Ipswich Town. Despite Ronaldo's impressive tally of 24 goals in his first season back at Old Trafford, Solskjaer's tenure as manager eventually came to an end, with Ralf Rangnick and Erik ten Hag taking over on an interim and permanent basis respectively.
As things went downhill for Ronaldo, with his role in the team diminishing in the 2022-23 season and eventually leaving for Al Nassr, he didn't hold back in his criticism of Ten Hag and the club. Solskjaer admits that signing the veteran at the age of 35 was a mistake, and McKenna's initial reservations about it now seem justified.
In a podcast with NRK, Solskjaer recalled how McKenna had analyzed Ronaldo's recent performances at Juventus and expressed concern about how he would affect the team's defensive capabilities. "How are we going to defend ourselves?" were the first words out of his mouth, according to Solskjaer.
Looking back at his time in charge of Manchester United, which lasted 168 games against all odds from December 2018 to November 2021, Solskjaer has mixed feelings. Despite not winning any trophies, he is proud of what he achieved, with a third-place finish and a second-place finish, along with several semi-final appearances. He believes that if they had won the Europa League final against Villarreal, his tenure would have had a different outcome.
When Ronaldo left for Saudi Arabia, he had nothing but praise for Solskjaer, even though he didn't have much good to say about Ten Hag or Rangnick. In an interview with Piers Morgan, Ronaldo described Solskjaer as a "top person" and spoke highly of his character and abilities as a coach. He also acknowledged the challenge of following in the footsteps of Sir Alex Ferguson but believed that with more time, Solskjaer would become a successful coach.
Despite their different paths and some ups and downs, it's clear that there is still a mutual respect and admiration between Solskjaer and Ronaldo. While their time together at Manchester United may not have ended on the best note, there is no denying the impact they both had on the club. And as for Solskjaer, he remains proud of his achievements and the progress he made during his time as manager.
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