After spending six years at the club during his first stint, the Portuguese superstar made a sensational return to Old Trafford in this transfer window.
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Christmas arrived early for Manchester United fans, thanks to the surprise return of a club legend, Cristiano Ronaldo. After spending six years at the club during his first stint, the Portuguese superstar has made a sensational return to Old Trafford in this transfer window. For the course of the summer, there were rumours linking him with a move away from Italian giants Juventus. As the window was coming to its close, the rumours gathered steam. At one point last week, he was heavily linked with a shock move to United’s local rivals Manchester City. But a whirlwind 24 hours, saw the 36-year-old signing for the club that made him the legend he is today.
United had already made two big name signings in the summer window – Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund and Raphael Varane from Real Madrid. With manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seeming relatively content with the transfer business at that point, not much was expected from the club in the remainder of the window. But, a crazy couple of days saw the most surprise transfer of the window – a homecoming for Ronaldo. His arrival has bolstered an already impressive attacking line-up for Solskjaer. With Edinson Cavani, Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood and Sancho already at Ole’s disposal, Ronaldo’s return creates a different dilemma to the manager’s team selection.
It is important to remember that Cristiano Ronaldo is no more the pacy and creative winger he used to be during his first stint at Old Trafford. Back then under Sir Alex Ferguson, Ronaldo used to primarily play on the left wing and sometimes used to operate on the right as well. He was, however, given the freedom to make the forward runs into the penalty box as he wished.
After leaving Manchester United for Real Madrid, the Portuguese star turned into a prolific goal scoring machine. He scored a staggering 450 goals in 438 matches for Real Madrid in all competitions, while he found the back of the net 101 times in 134 games across all competitions for Juventus.
These stats prove that Ronaldo is way more effective inside the penalty box. He might have found the back of the net 118 times from 292 matches across all competitions in his first spell with Manchester United. However, the 36-year-old no longer has the pace required to run with the ball from the left flank, beating multiple defenders on his way to score a screamer.
It is safe to assume that Cristiano Ronaldo will either play as the lone striker or as one of United’s two forwards. The only scenario where Ronaldo might play on the left is when Solskjaer plays a narrow front three. That way Cavani could be play in the middle, with Ronaldo on the left and Sancho/ Greenwood on the right.
Ronaldo’s role in the team might change as per the demands of the match. He might play in a narrow front three if United are chasing a goal and could return to his lone forward role while defending a lead. Traditionally, Ronaldo has thrived while playing alongside a centre-forward.
In Real Madrid, striker Karim Benzema’s selfless work – with and without the ball – allowed Ronaldo to score goals at his own free will. In Juventus, he normally played alongside either one of Paulo Dybala or Alvaro Morata up front. It means Manchester United fans can see Ronaldo-Cavani combination more regularly.
However, it is not as if Cristiano Ronaldo, who will be donning the No.7 jersey at Old Trafford, cannot play up top on his own. For a while now, he has played as the lone centre-forward for his national team Portugal. A record breaking 111 goals from 180 matches for his country proves that he can play as a lone striker, which could limit Cavani’s game time.
It will be interesting to see how Solskjaer fits his prized possession in the Starting line-up. At 36 years of age, he might not able to play every match. Nonetheless, the impact Cristiano Ronaldo will have on his teammates, opposition players and the fans will be massive in the upcoming season.
