Former Manchester United assistant coach Steve McClaren has given his verdict on Erik ten Hag’s handling of Cristiano Ronaldo after the Ballon d’Or winner decided to quit the club in 2022
Steve McClaren insists that Erik ten Hag adopted the right approach with Cristiano Ronaldo despite the spectacular breakdown in their relationship.
Speaking to The Telegraph, he said: “I couldn’t fault his [Ten Hag’s] approach. He really handled it very well. I said at the time he was the right man to go in. That was shown in the way he handled [the departure of] Ronaldo.
“He [Ten Hag] came in with set standards. Set rules. Set way of playing. And if you didn’t run, you didn’t play. He was rigid on that. Which the Dutch are. He knew that was what was needed. There could be no flexibility, no way the players could manoeuvre [out of that responsibility].
“This is what you had to do – or you didn’t play. And he took on Ronaldo, and quite rightly. Other managers have tried to adapt. Erik didn’t feel it was necessary to do that. [Ralf] Rangnick had tried and it hadn’t quite worked out and Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] the same. So he [Ten Hag] stuck to his guns and developed other players.”
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