In the loss to Aston Villa, Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag expressed his frustration at his player’s trick of constantly crossing to Cristiano Ronaldo. The Dutch manager believes that so many balls from vast areas were unnecessarily placed inside the box.
In the end, Villa defeated United by a 3-1 scoreline on Sunday at Villa Park. It was their first victory over the Red Devils at home in 27 years.
Speaking to the media after the match, Ten Hag expressed his displeasure with his players’ relentless attempt of finding the five-time Ballon d’Or winner. The team’s decision to continually cross the ball to the Portugal international was criticised by the Dutch boss.
As reported by the Express, he said:
“No, I think it was stupid to do that [often look for Ronaldo in the air]. We delivered too many quick crosses from too far away. There was too much forcing and we didn’t have to.”
In the game, United did make a few chances, but there weren’t many. In place of the suspended Bruno Fernandes and the benched Harry Maguire, Ronaldo led the line and received the captain’s armband.
As said by Ten Hag, a cross did connect with the Portuguese star’s head against Aston Villa but he aimed it directly towards Emiliano Martinez. In the current season, the Portuguese striker has not been at his best. Under Ten Hag, he has had a difficult time getting into the game. The 37-year-old has just recently begun to appear regularly in the starting lineup.
Additionally, this season, Ronaldo appears to be without his shooting boots. The forward has made 16 appearances across all leagues, scoring three goals and dishing out two assists. Manchester United have already lost four league games this season after the loss against Unai Emery’s side. United currently trail table-toppers Arsenal by 11 points.
