Former Liverpool defender Jose Enrique thinks Ralf Rangnick has the “same problem” with Cristiano Ronaldo that former Man Utd boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had.
The Portugal international was signed in the summer transfer window from Juventus to much fanfare and excitement from supporters across the Premier League.
Ronaldo has scored 13 goals in 18 appearances since returning to Old Trafford but the club’s fortunes haven’t improved because of his goals.
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Instead, some pundits, fans and former players have suggested that the signing of Ronaldo has worked against Man Utd achieving their targets.
And Enrique thinks Ronaldo “will have to adapt” to Rangnick’s methods rather than the other way round for the rest of the season.
Enrique told BeMyBet: “Look at Ronaldo’s age and he is still the top scorer at United. But I don’t see him playing for a team that plays with high pressing and high intensity. And Cristiano wants to play every game.
“If not, he’s not happy, so I don’t know how he’s going to handle that. Solskjaer had the same problem with Cristiano. You would always welcome Cristiano to your team, but Solskjaer changed the way he wanted United to play, a lot.
“I don’t see Rangnick adapting for Cristiano. Cristiano will have to adapt to him. He looks like a big personality and I like that. Cristiano will want to work because he is the best in terms of his body and fitness in the football world, but still the age is there and he cannot change that.
“You cannot ask him to run for 90 minutes. He’s never done that. At Real Madrid, they knew that and they played for him. In Italy he can do that, because the teams are more defensive and you don’t have to press that high.
“The Premier League is different, it’s up and down all the time. I’m not sure about the signing of Cristiano and whether it was good or not.”
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Rangnick has been appointed until the end of the campaign on an interim basis before moving into a consultancy role for two years and Enrique thinks the German will prove to be a good manager at Man Utd.
Enrique added: “First and foremost I like that United are trying to follow Liverpool. He’s a good manager – Klopp and Tuchel praise him a lot and say they learned a lot from him.
“The only thing is whether United can be patient enough and listen to him with the kind of players he wants. One of the most difficult things in modern football is getting a manager who you know will stay in the club for a long time.
“If it doesn’t start well it shouldn’t matter to the club if they trust him, just give him time. He didn’t start very well but let’s see how they do from now until the end of the season. But it’s a great appointment for United.”
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