Sir Alex Ferguson reveals Cristiano Ronaldo wink was NOTHING to do with Man Utd pal Wayne Rooney’s red card
SIR ALEX FERGUSON has revealed Cristiano Ronaldo’s infamous wink during the 2006 World Cup was NOTHING to do with Wayne Rooney.
Ronaldo caused a national uproar when Portugal beat England on penalties after Rooney was sent off.
The England striker was given a straight red after he was caught stamping on then-Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho.
Ronaldo protested to the referee for his Manchester United team-mate to be shown a red card, before being caught winking by TV cameras as Rooney was given his marching orders.
The controversy put major pressure on United and Rooney was keen to clear the air before the start of the new season with an interview.
But former Red Devils boss Fergie says Ronaldo’s wink was not aimed at Rooney’s sending off.
Ferguson, 79, told the UTD podcast: “He was not winking having got Rooney sent off. He was winking because his bench was telling him ‘calm down’.
“Wazza was fantastic. He phoned me and said ‘why don’t we do a TV interview with the two of us together at the start of the season’.
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“It seemed a wee bit gimmicky. He was great. He knew he was not sent off because of Ronaldo.
“He was sent off because of the tackle on the Portuguese player.”
Despite the controversy both Rooney and Ronaldo helped United to the Premier League title the following season, scoring 23 goals each.
They also lead United to the FA Cup final and Champions League semi-finals, where they lost to Chelsea and AC Milan.
But Ferguson says Ronaldo was keen to move from the club that summer after Real Madrid registered their interest.
He explained: “Critsiano did not want to come back.
“David Gill flew out to Portugal and had a meeting with him and [agent] Jorge Mendes was fantastic.
“I said to him I am not selling to Real Madrid. Give me one year of your best and you will go with my blessing.
“And Jorge Mendes says deal done. He did not even wait for Ronaldo. He knew he was at the best place.”
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