Cristiano Ronaldo is all set to take the Old Trafford pitch once again when Manchester United host Newcastle United on Saturday evening. The Portuguese international has already started to train with his new teammates and is raring to don the red shirt once again since he left for a big-money move to Real Madrid in July 2009.
The Red Devils' manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has also confirmed that Ronaldo will be involved in some capacity in the weekend.
“He's been having a good pre-season with Juventus, played with the national team and had a good week with us, he'll definitely be on the pitch at some point, that's for sure," he stated.
However, there has been a burning question amongst United fans since the five-time Ballon D'Or winner joined United - will Bruno Fernandes make way for his senior compatriot on the penalty duties? However, the Norwegian manager preferred not to reveal his decision.
“I knew that question was going to come and of course, I’ve had a chat with the two of them,” Solskjaer said. “We’ve got two players there that I’d trust with my life to put a penalty away and that’s a great position to be in.
"They’ll know via the conversations we’ve had and the conversations we’ll have before the games how we’re going to solve this. It’s going to be my decision what’ll happen. The two of them will keep on doing what they do when they’re asked to take the penalties. I’ve had this conversation, of course, and they know my position on it. They know that I decide who is going to shoot the penalty if we get one.”
Ronaldo has a panache for breaking records and if he does get the responsibility to take spot-kicks for United, he will look to displace Frank Lampard from the mantle of most penalties scored in the Premier League.
How many spot-kicks must Cristiano Ronaldo convert to become the all-time highest Premier League penalty scorer?
Ronaldo has some way to go if he is to snatch away the record from former Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard. The former England international has 32 strikes from 12 yards, while Ronaldo has only 11. So the Portuguese must score at least 22 penalties to set a new record. In fact, Jamie Vardy and Harry Kane, with 26 and 24 penalties to their name, are the favourites to displace Lampard.
Top-10 Premier League penalty scorers
| Rank | Player | Penalty Goals |
| 1. | Frank Lampard | 32 |
| 2. | Steven Gerrard | 29 |
| 3. | Sergio Aguero | 27 |
| 3. | Mark Noble | 27 |
| 5. | Jamie Vardy | 26 |
| 6. | Harry Kane | 24 |
| 7. | Wayne Rooney | 23 |
| 8. | Luka Milivojevic | 22 |
| 9. | Leighton Baines | 20 |
| 10. | Troy Deeney | 18 |