Gabby Agbonlahor has advised Cristiano Ronaldo to acclimatize to his reduced role at Manchester United by modeling his behavior after that of his longtime rival Lionel Messi.
Ronaldo, an unused substitute during his team’s commanding two-goal victory over Tottenham, was spotted leaving Old Trafford after the game.
According to some reports, he had also left before his victorious teammates entered the dressing room.
The Portuguese star has received harsh criticism for what he did after the match.
Immediately following the game, United manager Erik ten Hag spoke on the incident: “He (Ronaldo) was there, I have seen him but I didn’t speak. I will deal with that tomorrow not today.”
Ronaldo has started just one of United’s previous eight Premier League games and none of the six victories during that stretch.
However, he did score the game-winning goal against Everton after replacing Anthony Martial as an early substitute.
At the age of 37, Ronaldo must deal with his fading influence and importance inside the United team, and he has been advised to take a cue from Messi, with whom he has had a fierce on-field competition for more than ten years.
Now at Paris Saint-Germain, Messi is also having to come to terms with no longer being his side’s most significant player.
Although, he is two years younger and with greater prominence than Ronaldo, there are similarities between their declining status at the top of the sport.
Should Ronaldo Look To Messi?
Agbonlahor explained on talkSPORT when asked if he thought United boss Ten Hag was handling the situation correctly: “I think he is yeah.
“I think Ronaldo needs to look at [the fact that] he’s not performing in the game and that there are so many good players they have got available.
“They have [Anthony] Elanga, [Marcus] Rashford, who can be brought on as well. I’ve been watching a lot of PSG games and [Messi] gets brought off often.
“He doesn’t have a strop, he walks off, shakes the manager’s hand, and sits on the bench.
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“I think just because you are this outstanding player, you can’t have that feeling that ‘I can’t be brought off, I’m Ronaldo’.”
“If you’re not performing, then there are players who can come on and take your place. You’ve got to just handle it better,” Agbonlahor added.
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