Caoimhin O’Muraile ⚽ I have been and remain a Manchester United Fan all my life, as far back as I can remember back to the 1960s.

I remember the 1968 European Cup destruction of Benfica at Wembley and the previous season winning the league. I have vague recollections of our 1965 league championship winning team and have seen many clips of George Bests destruction of Benfica in 1966.

It was the late sixties when my mam and dad first took me to Old Trafford and in the seventies going down into the second division, I was at our only home defeat of the season going down 0-1 to Bristol City. I have been through every stage that football fans, those who actually attend games unlike most of those self-proclaimed fans today who watch games on television, which is no substitute for attending and does not, in our book, qualify somebody as a supporter. By every stage I mean going with parents at the age of nine, then travelling with a gang (sometimes jibbing) on trains and entering the overenthusiastic stage, often wrongly referred to as hooliganism, to moving away from the terraces, due to having a bad leg as a result of a motorbike crash, into the seats.

I have seen the Holy Trinity of Best, Charlton and Law under the managerial tutorship of the great Matt Busby, then, in the mid-seventies under Tommy Docherty his rebuilding bringing in players like Steve Coppell, Stuart Pearson, Gordon Hill, Lou Macari, and many other great players. Into the eighties and Bryan Robson, Frank Stapleton both who took Barcelona apart in 1984 at Old Trafford overturning their 2-0 lead from the Nou Camp to win 3-2 on aggregate. Old Trafford was rocking that night. Then into the nineties and United’s second greatest manager, Alex Ferguson (after Matt) and his sides which conquered the English game knocking the Scousers, Liverpool, “off their perch”. Great sides, even the team which went down were good compared with some of the shite served up as football today.

Some great players have worn the iconic number seven shirt, Best, Robson, David Beckham, Cantona to name but four who I have watched, but let us not forget David Pegg who perished at Munich in 1958 before my time. Then Alex Ferguson signed Cristiano Ronaldo who was given the number seven shirt. I saw Ronaldo play in his first stint at United and yes he was good, very good with some exciting moves but he was not, and never will be, another George Best. Perhaps the nearest I have seen to Best and still some distance behind was a young Ryan Giggs, but not Ronaldo. United sold Ronaldo to Real Madrid after Ferguson, uncharacteristically, persuaded him to stay at United another year before letting him go in 2009. 

He spent six years at Old Trafford and yes, he did make an impact no question there but to compare him to Georgie was ridiculous. He always reminded me of a spoilt kid, brat, but he was a good player even, for the standards of the day, exceptional. He won many honours helping United beat Chelsea in the 2008 European Cup Final, which was perhaps why Ferguson was anxious to keep him that extra year. Sometimes even Alex Ferguson had to use the power of persuasion rather than the notorious “hair dryer treatment”. Fair play, Ronaldo agreed and the move paid dividends in Europe. All that said I believe Steve Coppell on his day could match Ronaldo on the wing as could a player, again from the sixties and early seventies, Willie Morgan. Johnny Astons performance at Wembley in 1968 on the opposite wing played a blinder, as good as anything I have seen from Ronaldo, though admittedly it was very much a once off.

In 2021 Manchester United then managers, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer brought the by then ageing Ronaldo back to Old Trafford. There was much excitement particularly among the younger generation of fans but I was very sceptical. The player was the wrong side of thirty-five and began making demands even at that stage. In his first season back he scored 19 goals in 40 appearances, looking very much like the young player he was in his first term at United. Fair play, those goals saved us from finishing in a humiliating league position. 

This season, however, Ronaldo has failed to capture that early form which reminded us of his youth. He has not played well and has been inconsistent behaving like a spoilt brat at times and blaming everybody else but himself. When he was kicking and screaming during the summer about wanting to leave United, he should have been shown the door. Unfortunately, new manager, Erik ten Hag, was just feeling his feet and could have done without this cry baby making life more awkward. In a recent game at Old Trafford against Tottenham Hotspur Ronaldo was named as a substitute. When the manager told him to warm up as he was going on, the little spoilt brat refused. This was a clear front to ten Hag and his position and, for me, would have been the last straw. His bags would have been packed and would be told to fuck off and not come back. Obviously battle lines were now drawn between player and manager and in such situations the manager must prevail.

Erik ten Hag is trying to rebuild United, not an easy job in today’s climate particularly when hindered by the parasite club owners, the Glazers. He does not need another hinderance like Ronaldo spitting his dummy out. I think ten Hag has been very patient with the player and does not deserve what came next.

On the evening of Sunday 13th November Ronaldo requested an interview with sacked former Daily Mirror Editor, Piers Morgan. In this interview which, I repeat, the player requested, Ronaldo went out to slate, even slander United and our manager who had been more than patient. He also went on to have a go at former United great and all-time record scorer, Wayne Rooney which was uncalled for as indeed was the entire interview. He accused United and ten Hag in particular of showing him “no respect” and, therefore, why should he show the manager any “respect.” By this I can only assume he means not being picked for the starting eleven every week means the manager does not “respect” him. What bollocks, and what a bollocks this little prat has become.

Does he really believe that because his name is Cristiano Ronaldo he has an automatic right to play? Well he, or any other player, does not have that right. I could not imagine for one second Matt Busby, Frank O’Farrell, Tommy Docherty, Ron Atkinson and certainly not Alex Ferguson tolerating such behaviour from Ronaldo or anybody else and neither should Erik ten Hag. Ronaldo is threatening to come out with more bullshit to Morgan later this week as he accused United of not showing him sympathy on the sad death of his new born son. This is just not true as everybody at Old Trafford, and at Broadhurst Park, home of FC United, showed Ronaldo the utmost sympathy right from the fans to the manager to the players. Sure, even Liverpool fans, and fair play to them, showed sympathy for the player on the news of his sad loss. For Ronaldo to claim the opposite to Piers Morgan is simply untrue. He also claimed when his young daughter was ill in hospital he was not believed by the club. Again, this was not the case and he was given special dispensation from his playing duties by Manchester United.

Surely these latest outbursts must signal the end of Ronaldo at Old Trafford as this situation cannot be allowed to continue. Erik ten Hag’s job of rebuilding is difficult enough without Ronaldo throwing a tantrum every five minutes. To my, and many other fans thinking, three people need to leave Old Trafford. The hated Glazers, the owners, and Cristiano Ronaldo need to be out of the door before any real progress can be made and United reclaim our rightful crown as Kings of Manchester. It is time to knock City “off their perch” as Alex Ferguson did to Liverpool. Such a triumph will not happen while such obstacles as the Glazers and Ronaldo continue to grace us with their unwanted presence.

For Cristiano Ronaldo this entire episode, of his own making, is a crying shame. A player of his undoubted talent will be remembered not for his skills but the tantrums he has thrown at the second spell at Old Trafford. The man who, because at the age of 37 claimed he was been “disrespected” because he was not picked for the starting eleven every week. The man who considered himself above that of a substitute and as such refused to go out and play when his manager told him to start warming up. The man who thought he should never be substituted himself. A great pity and that’s for sure for a great player to be remembered!

Caoimhin O’Muraile is Independent 
Socialist Republican and Marxist

Cristiano Ronaldo

Caoimhin O’Muraile ⚽ I have been and remain a Manchester United Fan all my life, as far back as I can remember back to the 1960s.

I remember the 1968 European Cup destruction of Benfica at Wembley and the previous season winning the league. I have vague recollections of our 1965 league championship winning team and have seen many clips of George Bests destruction of Benfica in 1966.

It was the late sixties when my mam and dad first took me to Old Trafford and in the seventies going down into the second division, I was at our only home defeat of the season going down 0-1 to Bristol City. I have been through every stage that football fans, those who actually attend games unlike most of those self-proclaimed fans today who watch games on television, which is no substitute for attending and does not, in our book, qualify somebody as a supporter. By every stage I mean going with parents at the age of nine, then travelling with a gang (sometimes jibbing) on trains and entering the overenthusiastic stage, often wrongly referred to as hooliganism, to moving away from the terraces, due to having a bad leg as a result of a motorbike crash, into the seats.

I have seen the Holy Trinity of Best, Charlton and Law under the managerial tutorship of the great Matt Busby, then, in the mid-seventies under Tommy Docherty his rebuilding bringing in players like Steve Coppell, Stuart Pearson, Gordon Hill, Lou Macari, and many other great players. Into the eighties and Bryan Robson, Frank Stapleton both who took Barcelona apart in 1984 at Old Trafford overturning their 2-0 lead from the Nou Camp to win 3-2 on aggregate. Old Trafford was rocking that night. Then into the nineties and United’s second greatest manager, Alex Ferguson (after Matt) and his sides which conquered the English game knocking the Scousers, Liverpool, “off their perch”. Great sides, even the team which went down were good compared with some of the shite served up as football today.

Some great players have worn the iconic number seven shirt, Best, Robson, David Beckham, Cantona to name but four who I have watched, but let us not forget David Pegg who perished at Munich in 1958 before my time. Then Alex Ferguson signed Cristiano Ronaldo who was given the number seven shirt. I saw Ronaldo play in his first stint at United and yes he was good, very good with some exciting moves but he was not, and never will be, another George Best. Perhaps the nearest I have seen to Best and still some distance behind was a young Ryan Giggs, but not Ronaldo. United sold Ronaldo to Real Madrid after Ferguson, uncharacteristically, persuaded him to stay at United another year before letting him go in 2009. 

He spent six years at Old Trafford and yes, he did make an impact no question there but to compare him to Georgie was ridiculous. He always reminded me of a spoilt kid, brat, but he was a good player even, for the standards of the day, exceptional. He won many honours helping United beat Chelsea in the 2008 European Cup Final, which was perhaps why Ferguson was anxious to keep him that extra year. Sometimes even Alex Ferguson had to use the power of persuasion rather than the notorious “hair dryer treatment”. Fair play, Ronaldo agreed and the move paid dividends in Europe. All that said I believe Steve Coppell on his day could match Ronaldo on the wing as could a player, again from the sixties and early seventies, Willie Morgan. Johnny Astons performance at Wembley in 1968 on the opposite wing played a blinder, as good as anything I have seen from Ronaldo, though admittedly it was very much a once off.

In 2021 Manchester United then managers, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer brought the by then ageing Ronaldo back to Old Trafford. There was much excitement particularly among the younger generation of fans but I was very sceptical. The player was the wrong side of thirty-five and began making demands even at that stage. In his first season back he scored 19 goals in 40 appearances, looking very much like the young player he was in his first term at United. Fair play, those goals saved us from finishing in a humiliating league position. 

This season, however, Ronaldo has failed to capture that early form which reminded us of his youth. He has not played well and has been inconsistent behaving like a spoilt brat at times and blaming everybody else but himself. When he was kicking and screaming during the summer about wanting to leave United, he should have been shown the door. Unfortunately, new manager, Erik ten Hag, was just feeling his feet and could have done without this cry baby making life more awkward. In a recent game at Old Trafford against Tottenham Hotspur Ronaldo was named as a substitute. When the manager told him to warm up as he was going on, the little spoilt brat refused. This was a clear front to ten Hag and his position and, for me, would have been the last straw. His bags would have been packed and would be told to fuck off and not come back. Obviously battle lines were now drawn between player and manager and in such situations the manager must prevail.

Erik ten Hag is trying to rebuild United, not an easy job in today’s climate particularly when hindered by the parasite club owners, the Glazers. He does not need another hinderance like Ronaldo spitting his dummy out. I think ten Hag has been very patient with the player and does not deserve what came next.

On the evening of Sunday 13th November Ronaldo requested an interview with sacked former Daily Mirror Editor, Piers Morgan. In this interview which, I repeat, the player requested, Ronaldo went out to slate, even slander United and our manager who had been more than patient. He also went on to have a go at former United great and all-time record scorer, Wayne Rooney which was uncalled for as indeed was the entire interview. He accused United and ten Hag in particular of showing him “no respect” and, therefore, why should he show the manager any “respect.” By this I can only assume he means not being picked for the starting eleven every week means the manager does not “respect” him. What bollocks, and what a bollocks this little prat has become.

Does he really believe that because his name is Cristiano Ronaldo he has an automatic right to play? Well he, or any other player, does not have that right. I could not imagine for one second Matt Busby, Frank O’Farrell, Tommy Docherty, Ron Atkinson and certainly not Alex Ferguson tolerating such behaviour from Ronaldo or anybody else and neither should Erik ten Hag. Ronaldo is threatening to come out with more bullshit to Morgan later this week as he accused United of not showing him sympathy on the sad death of his new born son. This is just not true as everybody at Old Trafford, and at Broadhurst Park, home of FC United, showed Ronaldo the utmost sympathy right from the fans to the manager to the players. Sure, even Liverpool fans, and fair play to them, showed sympathy for the player on the news of his sad loss. For Ronaldo to claim the opposite to Piers Morgan is simply untrue. He also claimed when his young daughter was ill in hospital he was not believed by the club. Again, this was not the case and he was given special dispensation from his playing duties by Manchester United.

Surely these latest outbursts must signal the end of Ronaldo at Old Trafford as this situation cannot be allowed to continue. Erik ten Hag’s job of rebuilding is difficult enough without Ronaldo throwing a tantrum every five minutes. To my, and many other fans thinking, three people need to leave Old Trafford. The hated Glazers, the owners, and Cristiano Ronaldo need to be out of the door before any real progress can be made and United reclaim our rightful crown as Kings of Manchester. It is time to knock City “off their perch” as Alex Ferguson did to Liverpool. Such a triumph will not happen while such obstacles as the Glazers and Ronaldo continue to grace us with their unwanted presence.

For Cristiano Ronaldo this entire episode, of his own making, is a crying shame. A player of his undoubted talent will be remembered not for his skills but the tantrums he has thrown at the second spell at Old Trafford. The man who, because at the age of 37 claimed he was been “disrespected” because he was not picked for the starting eleven every week. The man who considered himself above that of a substitute and as such refused to go out and play when his manager told him to start warming up. The man who thought he should never be substituted himself. A great pity and that’s for sure for a great player to be remembered!

Caoimhin O’Muraile is Independent 
Socialist Republican and Marxist

4 comments:

  1. Great piece, Caoimhin. You are the real deal and have supported Manchester United through thick and thin, through the glorious and the ridiculous (e.g. now). As you say, Ronaldo does not deserve a spot in the starting eleven because he's Ronaldo. He's delusional that way and shows why his post-playing days will be frustrating and a kind of painful withdrawal from the drug of goal scoring, trophies, and adulation. He's not fit to be a manager, he's scathing without the cynical humor of Keano and thus unfit as a commentator, and will likely get caught up in a silly public relations war to prove himself superior to Messi. As an aside, comparing the two greats is just stupid. Lemons and limes. But please, holy suffering Jesus, can we just see the backside of Ronaldo at United? Please fuck off.

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  2. Couldn't agree more Micheal, the sooner the better. Remember when he purposely got Wayne Rooney sent off in an England Portugal game some years ago? He then was caught giving a sly wink as much as to say, thats him out of the way. Indicating he, not Rooney was the real indespensable player. I saw what happened, admittedly on TV, and Ronaldo made more than a meal out of a collision with Rooney. As soon as Wayne was dismissed by the Ref, Ronaldo was on his feet laughing and winking. If I'd had my way or any say he would have been at least reprimanded by United. Rooney was a team mate, in theory, but Ronaldo han no mates, team or otherwise, I wonder why that could be?

    Caoimhin O'Muraile

    ReplyDelete
  3. Caoimhin
    I have been and remain a Manchester United Fan all my life, as far back as I can remember

    Me too, MUFC is the only league team I have I followed and supported since 1977 when I watched them beat Liverpool in the FA cup final...But you are also a fan/supporter of FCUM (which makes your poke at Peter for supporting two footy teams null and void)... Where does your loyalty lie? For example it is the last match of the season for both teams, both matches kick off at 3pm on the same day and if either team won the last match they would win their league. Who would you go to watch....FCUM or MUFC?....

    Perhaps the nearest I have seen to Best and still some distance behind was a young Ryan Giggs

    I can understand the comparison made between Best and Giggs. Both have been abusive to women, George would get drunk and slap his women around...Giggs wasn't far behind Best in that game, some would say Giggs treatment was worse. He cheated on his wife with his sister in law and forced her to terminate her pregnancy and he is still up on charges for being an abusive controlling prick.....

    Tommy Docherty his rebuilding bringing in players

    While 'The Doc' was busy re-building MUFC how many marriages in MUFC did he wreck by having affairs with his staffs wives?

    Ferguson had to use the power of persuasion rather than the notorious “hair dryer treatment”.

    Fergie and his 'hair dryer'....In real terms he hurled dogs abused, insulted players and was prone to outburst of violence...Didn't Becks get a black eye after Fergie lost his cool and kick a football boot at him?

    When the manager told him to warm up as he was going on, the little spoilt brat refused.

    What about a mention to Paul Scholes who refused to play a match when Fergie told him he was on the starting 11? Or how the new kid on the block Anthony went on strike to force a move to MUFC in the summer.....?

    then travelling with a gang (sometimes jibbing) on trains and entering the overenthusiastic stage, often wrongly referred to as hooliganism,

    A gang of footy fans jump turn styles, scare members of the public going about their lives who were maybe taking their kids to the same match (like your parents did with you) only to watch one gang beat up another gang because they wore the wrong colours.....I'd call it 'hooliganism'....

    ReplyDelete
  4. The other day CR7 made it five from five in WC goals...Hope he breaks a few more records before he hangs up his boots....

    ReplyDelete