EPL: Ronaldo doubtful for Man Utd’s clash at Aston Villa
Cristiano Ronaldo went home early from training yesterday with a thigh injury and is a doubt for tomorrow’s Premier League game against Aston Villa.
Ronaldo missed Monday’s 1-0 FA Cup third-round victory over Villa with a hip injury.
But this is a separate problem picked up in training at Carrington yesterday.
Ronaldo was looked at by United’s medical specialists before driving home where he will make use of his own private oxygen chamber he has had put in his house.
It aids recovery from injury by breathing pure air directly into blood plasma which repairs any damaged tissue.
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The 36-year-old United legend is desperate to be fit for Villa and help his teammates get their bid for a top-four place back on track.
The Red Devils have dropped five of the last nine points available in the league with a draw away to Newcastle and home defeat to Wolves either side of a 3-1 win over Burnley.
They sit seventh, six points behind fourth-placed West Ham, but with two games in hand on the Hammers.
While new boss Ralf Rangnick has lost only one of his seven games in charge the performances have not been up to the level expected by United fans.
That is something Ronaldo says they have to solve starting this weekend.
Ronaldo said: “Let’s be honest. The last five or six games, do you think Manchester United played very well? No.
“You know that, everyone knows that. We have – how can I say? – time to improve.
“We have a squad with potential, a new manager, why don’t we believe we can do better?
“You have to believe, you have to be positive to try to change things and to play how Manchester United fans want and the history of the club.”
Ronaldo also attacked the poor mentality of some of his teammates.
He claimed it was not about Rangnick’s new formation and tactics but about the attitude on the pitch.
He also questioned the attitude of some young stars at the club who he says he wants to help but wonders if they are listening to the more experienced players like himself.