Cristiano Ronaldo banned: Latest on Man United suspension vs. Chelsea after walking off again

Joe Wright

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Cristiano Ronaldo banned: Latest on Man United suspension vs. Chelsea after walking off again image

OLD TRAFFORD, MANCHESTER — Cristiano Ronaldo managed to grab some of the headline space following Manchester United's victory over Tottenham Hotspur despite not playing in the match.

The Red Devils ran out 2-0 winners at Old Trafford against Spurs, Fred and Bruno Fernandes scoring the goals in a dominant performance that was easily among the best they have produced under manager Erik ten Hag.

The Dutchman dropped Ronaldo from his starting lineup for the visit of Antonio Conte's side, and the veteran forward was not among the United players who celebrated the result in front of jubilant supporters at full-time.

MORE: Manchester United vs. Tottenham Hotspur result, highlights and analysis

Cristiano Ronaldo leaves Spurs game early

With United cruising to a 2-0 victory, Cristiano Ronaldo decided to leave the match early rather than stay until the end to celebrate an impressive win with his teammates.

The Portugal star exited down the touchline and into the tunnel before the final whistle.

The word on the ground is that, although he did not exactly storm out of Old Trafford, he did not stop to sign autographs for some of the fans who had begun to gather around the players' entrance in anticipation of the end of the match.

Ronaldo, who was dropped from the starting lineup for the visit of Spurs, was overlooked as a substitute as Ten Hag instead introduced Scott McTominay, Anthony Elanga and Christian Eriksen off the bench to see out the win.

The reaction was largely one of disappointment with Ronaldo's actions. "There was a game, a magnificent game for Man United. The story shouldn't be Ronaldo walking off," former Arsenal star Thierry Henry said on Amazon Prime Sport.

His old United teammate, Patrice Evra, countered: "I want to stay on the United performance. It's not to protect Cristiano — we don't know if he said to Ten Hag, 'I'm going in'. I don't want to find any excuse, but I want to be focused more on the performance of Man United. We have to stop talking every day about Cristiano." 

What did Erik ten Hag say about Ronaldo?

Ten Hag was asked about Ronaldo's actions after the match. The United manager, to his credit, seemed determined not to allow the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's early departure to distract from his team's performance.

Indeed, the former Ajax boss agreed that this was United's best performance of 2022/23 — a performance that came without Ronaldo in the team.

He told a post-match press conference: "I didn't pay attention [to that] today. We deal with that tomorrow. I want to get the focus on this team — it was a magnificent performance from all 11 players. I have to correct myself — it was the subs who came on as well. It was a squad performance.

"We deal with it [Ronaldo] tomorrow. What we've seen today was 11 players who defend, 11 players who attack, a lot of dynamic. I'm pleased with that. I will not say I am totally satisfied; good is not good enough. That has to be the standard here.

"It was the best team performance this season. We've seen we're developing but we already see the last weeks the way we want to play. We're getting better every time on the pitch. Spurs are a magnificent team this season but it was really enjoyable to watch that."

In Friday's press conference ahead of the Chelsea match, Ten Hag revealed Ronaldo had refused to come on at the end of the game and that he needed to ensure discipline was followed at the club.

"What (happened in) the talk is between Cristiano and me. The (club) statement is also clear," he said,

"I am the manager, I'm responsible for the top sport culture here and I have to set standards and values, and I have to control them. We are in a team.

"After Rayo Vallecano I said it's unacceptable but he wasn't the only one. That is for everyone, when it's the second time it will have consequence. That is now what we did. We'll miss him tomorrow, it's a miss for the squad but I think it's important for the attitude, mentality for the group."

Will Ronaldo play against Chelsea?

Less than 24 hours after Ronaldo headed down the tunnel, United issued a brief statement about how they would be dealing with the incident... and it's bad news for the former Real Madrid man.

A statement from United said: “Cristiano will not be part of the Manchester United squad for this Saturday’s game against Chelsea. The rest of the squad is fully focused on preparing for that fixture."

On Friday, Ten Hag confirmed he would be training away from the rest of the squad until the Chelsea match. 

"I think it will be a reflection for him and also for everyone else," said Ten Hag on what he hoped Ronaldo's punishment would achieve.

"I set a warning at the start of the season and the next time it has to be consequence. When you are living together, playing together, football is a team sport and you have to fulfil certain standards and I have to control it."

It is thought the decision was made by Ten Hag and has been backed by the club's hierarchy.

Ronaldo releases statement on Chelsea ban

Cristiano Ronaldo posted a statement on his Instagram account regarding his departure from the Tottenham game early and his subsequent ban against Chelsea.

The statement is extremely vague and does not reference the incident directly, but context makes it clear he's referring to his actions on Wednesday at Old Trafford. The statement also does not apologize for his actions to the club, the squad, or the fans, but does briefly mention that his frustrations "got the best of" him.

Ronaldo then commits to "keep working hard in Carrington, support my teammates and be ready for everything in any given game." He says "giving in to the pressure is not an option. It never was."

The statement in full reads:

As I’ve always done throughout my career, I try to live and play respectfully towards my colleagues, my adversaries and my coaches. That hasn’t changed. I haven’t changed. I’m the same person and the same professional that I’ve been for the last 20 years playing elite football, and respect has always played a very important role in my decision making process.

I started very young, the older and most experienced players examples were always very important to me. Therefore, later on, I’ve always tried to set the example myself for the youngsters that grew in all the teams that I’ve represented. Unfortunately that’s not always possible and sometimes the heat of the moment get’s the best of us.

Right now, I just feel that I have to keep working hard in Carrington, support my teammates and be ready for everything in any given game. Giving in to the pressure is not an option. It never was. This is Manchester United, and united we must stand. Soon we’ll be together again.

Why didn't Ronaldo play against Tottenham?

Ronaldo started the 0-0 draw with Newcastle United at Old Trafford last weekend but was substituted in the second half for Marcus Rashford. He took his seat in the dugout after disconsolately shaking his head, having struggled to make an impact in the game.

Ten Hag felt Rashford had a big impact against the Magpies and decided the England forward was the best option against Spurs. He was repaid for his decision by a fine performance from the 24-year-old, who led the United attack superbly and was only denied a goal by some inspired goalkeeping from Hugo Lloris.

"Against this Tottenham, you need good pressing, you need good counter-press because from there you can create chances," Ten Hag explained. "So, we need good pressing players, and offensive-wise, you need dynamic. That is what Marcus can bring.

"You can see from the last 20 minutes against Newcastle, he changed the game: more dynamic, more gaps."

MORE: Premier League top goal scorers 2022-2023: Updated golden boot rankings

Has Ronaldo done this before?

This is not the first time Ronaldo has left a United match early.

In the preseason friendly draw at home to Rayo Vallecano, he chose to leave the game at halftime, having played the first 45 minutes before being substituted. On this occasion, he was not the only United player to do so.

Ten Hag was not happy with those who left the game early, describing their behaviour at the time as "unacceptable".

That had been Ronaldo's first appearance under the new United manager. He had missed their preseason tour due to a family issue and had been unable to force through the transfer he wanted following United's disappointing 2021/22 season.

Joe Wright

Joe Wright Photo

Joe is a Senior Editor at Sporting News. He was previously a sub editor and writer for Goal.com before spending six years as part of the Stats Perform editorial news service, covering major global sports including football, tennis, boxing, NBA, rugby union and athletics. Joe has reported live on some of the biggest games in football, including two UEFA Champions League finals, Euro 2016, the Confederations Cup 2017 and the 2018 World Cup final at the end of a month in Russia.