Man Utd stars’ blunt warning to Cristiano Ronaldo when he first joined club revealed
MANCHESTER UNITED stars gave Cristiano Ronaldo a blunt warning when he arrived at Old Trafford.
And he was brutally told: “We are not here to see you play.”
Ronaldo joined the Red Devils for the first time in 2003.
He arrived as a skinny teenager with bags of raw talent and potential – and loved showboating his tricks.
But former United midfielder Gordon Strachan revealed the experienced first-team stars were not afraid to make their feelings known to Ronaldo.
And he thinks Antony may well have got similar treatment.
Strachan said: “Antony reminds me of Cristiano Ronaldo, although it’s never good to compare.
“It seems to me that he thinks he’s him, but I don’t think he’s as good as Ronaldo. He plays with the ball too much.
“When Ronaldo arrived at Manchester United for the first time, there were people in the team who told him the truth.
“‘Sorry, we don’t want you dancing around with the ball when you can cross earlier. Use your skills in areas where you can produce something of useful. We’re not here to see you play.'”
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Ronaldo buckled down under Sir Alex Ferguson to become one of the best players in the world, winning three Premier Leagues, the Champions League and the Ballon d’Or before his world-record transfer to Real Madrid in 2009.
Antony, meanwhile, arrived from Ajax for a whopping £85.5m.
He was quick to bring his creative flair – including his ‘fidget spinner’ move – but has struggled for goals and assists in his debut season.
Ex-Scotland boss Strachan added: “If you’re genuinely doing it for the team, that’s fine.
“If you’re doing it for yourself, you might as well stop it.
“It’s the kind of thing Neymar does. He does it for him. You’ll never see top players doing it, trying to ridicule the opponents they are playing.
“They do it for the team with humility.
“Ronaldo realised this early in his career and still understands it.
“In recent weeks we have been able to witness some magical things from Antony, but you have to be a good team-mate.”