Solskjaer reveals Ronaldo demand

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has revealed Cristiano Ronaldo kicked off when he was benched after arriving at Manchester United – despite asking not to play.

The superstar was signed in 2021 to help boost United’s Premier League winning chances after Solskjaer had finished second the year before.

He scored twice on his second debut against Newcastle and again in his second game against West Ham.

The Portuguese then started against Aston Villa for the third consecutive game – just as he had requested. Solksjaer then benched him at his request but Ronaldo still threw his toys out of the pram, according to the Norwegian.

Appearing on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Solskjaer said: “Part of signing Cristiano Ronaldo was getting that passion from him, but that did have its complications.

“You’ve got Mason Greenwood, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial, who can learn from Cristiano as he’s the best, the most disciplined and he’s been the best player in the world, and you think he’s going to help them.

“When he arrived at the club, he told me to start him for three games in a row, and then put me on the bench for the fourth game, but he’s so passionate so when I did that, he didn’t like it.”