“Outrageous way to treat the world’s best footballer”
Piers Morgan has called out Michael Carrick for dropping Cristiano Ronaldo to the bench for Manchester United’s clash at Chelsea on Sunday, labelling him a “managerial halfwit”.
United earned themselves a decent point at Stamford Bridge at the weekend, holding on for a 1-1 draw against the league leaders.
The Red Devils took the lead in the second-half when Jadon Sancho made the most of Jorginho’s mistake on the halfway line, grabbing his second goal in as many games.
However, Chelsea levelled proceedings when Jorginho made up for his earlier mistake by converting a penalty after Aaron Wan-Bissaka fouled Thiago Silva in the penalty area.
Despite the Blues dominating for large periods of the match, both sides had chances to win it late on – with Fred missing a good chance for United, before Antonio Rüdiger blazed an effort over the bar in added-time.
With the arrival of former RB Leipzig boss Ralf Rangnick now confirmed, it will likely be Michael Carrick’s last game in charge as interim boss at United.
The former Red Devils midfielder made the bold decision to bench Ronaldo for the game, leading to many people questioning the 40-year-old’s decision to do so.
While the Portugal captain has been criticised on occasions this season for his pressing – or lack thereof – he has still registered 10 goals and two assists in 15 appearances for United since his return to Old Trafford in the summer.
Following the game at the Bridge, Jamie Carragher and Roy Keane debated why the Red Devils actually signed the 36-year-old and discussed his impact on the team.
Much like Keane, Piers Morgan has jumped to the defence of Ronaldo, slamming Carrick in the process.
Keane’s bang on… @Cristiano has scored ten goals this season but gets benched by a temporary managerial halfwit who helped Solskjaer drive United into mid-table mediocrity. Outrageous way to treat the world’s best footballer. https://t.co/7coy85M47k
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) November 28, 2021
Taking to Twitter, he labelled the caretaker manager a ‘halfwit’ for benching Ronaldo.
He said: “Keane’s bang on… Cristiano Ronaldo has scored ten goals this season but gets benched by a temporary managerial halfwit who helped Solskjaer drive United into mid-table mediocrity. Outrageous way to treat the world’s best footballer.”
Ronaldo has saved United on a number of occasions already this season, scoring important late goals against Atalanta and Villarreal in the Champions League.
The ex-Juventus man was clearly frustrated with both the result and the decision to drop him to the bench, storming down the tunnel straight after the final whistle.
Related links:
- Jamie Carragher and Roy Keane clash over Cristiano Ronaldo’s role at Man Utd
- Roy Keane ‘disagrees’ with everything Michael Carrick said after Man United-Chelsea match
- Michael Carrick should drop Ronaldo to ‘balance the team’, claims John Barnes
