Erik ten Hag Tried To Impose His Style On Ronaldo – Steve McClaren

Former Manchester United coach Steve McClaren has opened up on the internal power struggle that defined Cristiano Ronaldo’s second spell at the club. He recently had his say while speaking to the press, and fans have been reacting.

According to him, Ronaldo consistently resisted tactical demands under Erik ten Hag, and that ultimately led to their fractured relationship and his bitter exit from Old Trafford.

Steve added that it was a very tough period for ETH because he was trying to build his team’s foundation while navigating the ego of a global icon.

His words, “Erik tried to impose his style and that’s why he had that fight with Ronaldo all the way through. I said to Erik, very early, ‘It’s you or him’.

“Ronaldo was generally OK. But he didn’t want to do the job that Erik wanted him to do. Or didn’t feel he was capable of doing it. The instructions out of possession were, ‘Get into the middle, as soon as you’re back, you’re the first press, then double run, even a triple run now and again’. I used to say to Ronnie, ‘If you want to play, that’s what you’ve got to do’.

He’d argue, ‘Ah, nobody wants to press’. I’d say, ‘Well, they’re all young lads, they can press’. I said, ‘You have to run, it’s simple, Ronnie. If you don’t, you don’t play’.”

“Maybe other managers have tried to adapt and accommodate to get the best out of [Ronaldo]. With Fergie, he was right or you were out. If you weren’t with him and he knew it, you were gone. And that’s the authority, the power that he had developed over years and years. The Gaffer, Sir Alex, got time to do it. Erik didn’t get the same time.”

WOW.

Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United or simply United, is a professional football club based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top division in the English football league system.

Nicknamed the Red Devils, they were founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, but changed their name to Manchester United in 1902. After a spell playing in Clayton, Manchester, the club moved to their current stadium, Old Trafford, in 1910.

Alex Ferguson and his assistant Archie Knox arrived from Aberdeen on the day of Atkinson’s dismissal, and guided the club to an 11th-place finish in the league. Despite a second-place finish in 1987–88, the club was back in 11th place the following season. Reportedly on the verge of being dismissed, Ferguson’s job was saved by victory over Crystal Palace in the 1990 FA Cup final.

The following season, Manchester United claimed their first UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup title. That triumph allowed the club to compete in the European Super Cup for the first time, where United beat European Cup holders Red Star Belgrade 1–0 at Old Trafford. The club appeared in two consecutive League Cup finals in 1991 and 1992 the left and the right, but he’s not got any sense of danger yet, and empties the midfield area too readily.