Manchester United’s midweek Premier league victory at home against Tottenham finished on a sour note as star player Cristiano Ronaldo was caught leaving the pitch before the whooter. The team remained with an unused substitute for the duration of the encounter.
Notably, the club announced in an official statement on Thursday that the star footballer will not be a part of the squad for Saturday’s Premier League game against Chelsea.
“Cristiano Ronaldo will not be part of the Manchester United squad for this Saturday’s Premier League game against Chelsea. The rest of the squad is fully focused on preparing for that fixture,” the official statement read.
Responding to his axing from the squad, Ronaldo shared a post on his Instagram handle soon after.
“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,” the post read.
“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 gets the best of us,” the post further read.