Ronaldo’s derby decision ‘surprises’ Man Utd stars

According to reports, Cristiano Ronaldo’s decision to fly to Portugal before the Manchester derby ‘surprised’ his Man Utd teammates.

The forward was ruled out of the game through injury. It is stated that he has picked up a recurrence of his hip flexor issue.

Without Ronaldo, Man Utd were beaten 4-1 by their rivals Man City on Sunday afternoon.

16 Conclusions: Manchester City 4-1 Manchester United

Jadon Sancho equalised for the Red Devils in between Kevin De Bruyne’s two goals before the break.

Man City toyed with their opponents in the second half. Riyad Mahrez scored a brace as Pep Guardiola’s side restored their six-point lead at the top of the Premier League.

Man Utd meanwhile have dropped out of the top four. Arsenal now sit fourth and they still have three games in hand over United.

The Athletic are reporting that Ronaldo opted to fly to Portugal before the Manchester derby. This decision is said to have ‘surprised’ his teammates.

They feel that his attendance at the Etihad could have been ‘beneficial’ given his ‘aura and contributions this campaign’.

Roy Keane delivered a scathing assessment after the defeat, insisting that Man Utd “threw the towel” in against their city rivals:

“I think the worst thing you could say about United is they did give up,” Keane told Sky Sports. “For a player in a derby, or any game, to give up, it’s unforgivable really.

“The beauty of top-level sport is there is no hiding place. We saw all United’s shortcomings today.

“There’s ways to lose football matches, we’ve all lost football matches, but the way United lost today. They stopped running. They gave up. There’s players out there not running back.

“That’s what I don’t understand. The manager will be criticised, and the tactics, but players not running back when they’re playing for Man United is unacceptable.

“They threw the towel in, which is shameful.”

“I forgive mistakes, but you’ve got to run back. There’s five or six players who should never play for Man United.

“It’s shameful. A couple of lads in midfield, (Aaron) Wan-Bissaka, Fred, (Marcus) Rashford came on. I could go on. And City weren’t even at their best. They didn’t have to be.

“They gave up, Shame on them!”