Nani defends Cristiano Ronaldo’s desire to leave Man United this summer… insisting his former team-mate ‘doesn’t have time’ to wait for Erik ten Hag’s rebuild because he wants to continue ‘being the man at the top’
- Nani has defended Cristiano Ronaldo’s attempts to leave Manchester United
- He believes Ronaldo does not have time to wait for a long-term project at United
- The two Portuguese forwards played 129 games together for club and country
Nani has leapt to the defence of his close friend and former team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo, who is trying to push through a move away from Manchester United.
The Portuguese forward has played alongside his five-time Ballon d’Or winning compatriot for both club and country, but understands the position he now finds himself, saying he cannot wait for a project to come good.
Nani, who now turns out for Australian side Melbourne Victory, has played 129 games with the United forward dating back to a 4-2 loss against Denmark for Portugal in 2006.
Nani defended his former team-mate for club and country Cristiano Ronaldo’s transfer request
The 35-year-old said on Rio Ferdinand’s Vibe With Five podcast: ‘It’s a long time since we played together and Cristiano is not a kid anymore.
Ronaldo and Nani won the Champions League together in 2007-08
‘Times change and the reactions and attitude can change as well. But, as we see, he’s doing the same things as usual; he doesn’t like to lose, he reacts when the team is not doing well.
‘But the only difference is that it’s different times. He’s playing again at Man United but he’s been all over the world doing well at different teams with different players.
‘He’s in a team where the managers are trying to build a strong team and it’s not easy, it takes time.
‘For Cristiano, he doesn’t have time to lose on building teams or waiting for the next season. He wants to continue to be at the top, scoring goals, being the man.
‘That’s why the reaction is normal, we all have the wrong reactions sometimes.’
With a new manager, a record poor season in 2021-22 and an embarrassing transfer window, the last thing that United fans would have wanted is to see their most important player push for a move away.
Ronaldo has another year on his contract…