Wayne Rooney appears to back Manchester United SACKING Cristiano Ronaldo
>
‘His comments were a bit strange’: Wayne Rooney appears to be supporting Manchester United RESIGN Cristiano Ronaldo as he responds to interview bombshell calling his old teammate a ‘RAT’
- Cristiano Ronaldo slammed his former Manchester United teammate Wayne Rooney for criticizing him during an extraordinary interview with Piers Morgan
- The Portuguese star made a strange ‘rat’ jibe aimed at Rooney and other media pundits
- He also suggested that Rooney was jealous of his good looks and continued career
- Rooney has now responded by saying Ronaldo’s comments were “a bit odd”.
- He said United would look into the matter while the club looked into ways to sack him
Wayne Rooney has reacted to Cristiano Ronaldo’s ‘rat’ swipe by describing his former Manchester United striker’s comments as ‘strange’ and giving the impression that the club is firing him.
During his amazing interview with Piers Morgan, Ronaldo took aim at Rooney’s criticism of him in the media, suggesting there was “jealousy” because he looked better and was still playing.
The ‘rat’ insult came after Morgan said he was trying to figure out how Rooney could hate Ronaldo even more. He asked, “More pounds in the bank or more Instagram followers?”
Laughing, Ronaldo replied: ‘That’s a good question! Probably similar!’
Morgan said, “I’m trying to figure out how Wayne Rooney could hate you more.”
Ronaldo replied, “Not only him, imagine the rest of the rats start criticizing me too, but it’s good to still be number 1.”
The 37-year-old also said of Rooney, also 37, in the interview: ‘Probably [it’s jealousy]. Probably – because he ended his career in his thirties. I still play at a high level; I’m not going to say I look better than him, that’s true.’
Wayne Rooney has responded to Cristiano Ronaldo’s criticism in his explosive interview with Piers Morgan by supporting Manchester United who sacked him
Striking out criticism from former United teammates – including Rooney – Ronaldo made a ‘rat’ jibe, suggesting the former England striker was jealous he was still playing
Now Rooney has responded to Ronaldo’s comments, telling CNN: “Well, listen, Cristiano Ronaldo is a fantastic player and, as I said before, he and [Lionel] Messi are probably the two best players to play the game.
And again, it’s not a criticism. What I have said is that we are all getting older, and Cristiano clearly feels that and finds it difficult to deal with.
“Obviously he did an interview that went global. Bit strange, some of the comments are odd there, but I’m sure Manchester United will deal with it once they’ve seen the full interview and they’ll take the necessary action.’
Rooney responded to Ronaldo’s comments while attending the Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai
The pair played alongside each other in highly successful Manchester United sides
As Sportsmail revealed, United are looking at ways to sack Ronaldo after he claimed the club had ‘betrayed’ him and targeted manager Erik ten Hag and the club’s American owners.
The interview, which was not authorized by the club, came in the hours after United’s 2-1 Premier League win at Fulham, their last game before the World Cup.
It meant Ronaldo could report for international duty with Portugal, knowing that he wouldn’t have to face the immediate consequences of his comments at United for the next three weeks.
Ronaldo claimed he feels “betrayed” by United and said he has “no respect” for boss Erik ten Hag
It remains to be seen whether Ronaldo will play for United again after his comments, with United’s lawyers studying his words to see if they constitute a breach of contract.
The Portuguese star has a £500,000-a-week contract at Old Trafford, but this could be torn up to allow him to leave on a free transfer in January.
His agent Jorge Mendes is looking for a new club and it has emerged that the pair met with officials from German champions Bayern Munich last week.
Rooney and Ronaldo have a long history, dating back to 2004 when Rooney arrived at Old Trafford a year after Ronaldo moved to the English giants.
The pair were involved in an infamous incident at the 2006 World Cup when Rooney was sent off for stomping on Ricardo Carvalho.
As Rooney left the field, Ronaldo was caught winking on camera, appearing to confirm he had played a part in ensuring the England striker got his marching orders.
On their return to United the following season, the duo put aside their differences and entered into a deadly partnership that led the club to three successive league titles, plus the Champions League in 2008.
However, it seems their relationship has now hit a new low, with Ronaldo not taking it too kindly when Rooney questions his behaviour.
