IT’S ALL GONE RON

Ronaldo wanted to win trophies at United but his ambitions were thwarted by the club’s many failures

- DAVID McDONNELL

MANCHESTER UNITED cannot be surprised by Cristiano Ronaldo’s desire to leave after their worst season of the Premier League era.

When Ronaldo rejoined United last summer, amid a frenzy of hype and hysteria, he stressed he had returned to win trophies and not, in his own words, for “a holiday” in the twilight of his glittering career.

United had just finished second in the Premier League and, with Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho also arriving, there was the tangible prospect of a return to title contention.

And when Ronaldo marked his return by scoring twice in an emphatic 4-1 home win over Newcastle to put United top, it seemed his homecoming would have the perfect ending.

But that optimism swiftly evaporated as United’s form nosedived in the weeks that followed, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer sacked on November 21 after a humiliating 4-1 defeat at Watford.