Fred admits he was ‘SHOCKED’ Cristiano Ronaldo left Old Trafford after refusing to come on as a substitute in the win over Spurs, and says he understands the Portuguese superstar’s frustration at his lack of playing time.
- Man United’s Fred was ‘shocked’ to learn of Cristiano Ronaldo’s premature departure
- Fred scored for the Red Devils against Spurs, but Ronaldo went into the tunnel early
- The Brazilian midfielder sympathized with his teammate for wanting to play
- He was glad that the Portuguese star spoke with Erik ten Hag so that everything was okay.
Manchester United’s Fred said he was “shocked” by Cristiano Ronaldo’s early exit from their recent game against Tottenham Hotspur, but added “the important thing” was that the situation had calmed down.
Ronaldo left the Spurs game early after a dispute with Erik ten Hag over refusing to come on as a substitute, and the Red Devils manager quickly let the Portuguese star out.
However, the 37-year-old returned to Man United to score against FC Sheriff before setting up the only goal in a 1-0 win over Real Sociedad on Thursday.
Fred was ‘shocked’ when he later learned of Cristiano Ronaldo’s early exit from the Spurs game
Ronaldo got sympathy from his Brazilian colleague as they want to play as much as possible.
Fred, 29, has started just four Man United league games this season, and said such incidents are part of football when players like Ronaldo and himself are determined to play as often as they can.
The midfielder, who joined United in 2018, told Brazil’s TNT Sports that he did not see Ronaldo walk through the tunnel before full time in the Spurs game, in which Fred scored one of the winning goals. Man United 2-0.
He said: ‘I was in the field there. You end up focusing, you don’t even see it. It turned out that I saw it later on the news. I was even surprised when I saw it, but it happens.
The Brazilian midfielder continued: ‘It’s difficult. Everyone tries in some way. It’s obvious that everyone wants to be on the pitch, they want to play to help the team. So when you end up not playing, you get frustrated.
Fred said that it was important that Ronaldo and Erik ten Hag talk, and now everything is fine.
‘This is normal, it has happened to him, it has happened to me, to another person. I think that’s part of football.
Fred finished by noting: ‘I think he stayed there, we talked there, they had their conversation, him and Erik ten Hag. The important thing is that everything is fine.
He also scored again, which is important. I hope that he can continue to score and that he has a great season at United.”
Manchester United’s remaining games before the international break are league and cup games against Aston Villa, before visiting Fulham.
