CELEBRITY
Ronaldo ruthlessly taunted Man Utd pre-season friendly; even Sir Alex can’t convince him to stay
Cristiano Ronaldo was not named in the squad as Manchester United defeated Wrexham in a behind-closed-doors pre-season friendly at their Carrington base on Wednesday
According to Mirror, Ronaldo could only watch from the sidelines as his celebration was mimicked by a Wrexham player during the pre-season friendly.
The Portugal captain, 37, played no part in the fixture and his future at Old Trafford remains uncertain as he pushes to leave for a club which can offer him Champions League football this season. He missed the Red Devils’ tour of Thailand and Australia for ‘family reasons’ and only returned to their headquarters this week for showdown talks with manager Erik ten Hag.
United legend Sir Alex Ferguson was present for the discussions but Ronaldo remains reluctant to stay put this summer.
It was no surprise he sat out the behind-closed-doors fixture against Wrexham, but he was one of the senior players who watched an inexperienced United line-up win 4-1 against the National League side.
While Christian Eriksen fired the hosts into the lead on his debut with a free kick, the teams entered the interval on level footing after Aaron Hayden levelled for the Welsh club.
The defender, who was on the books at Chelsea and Wolves as an academy player, was clearly delighted to have scored against United and celebrated by copying Ronaldo’s famous “siu” routine, as reported by Wrexham insiders and podcasters RobRyanRed.
Although the five-time Ballon d’Or winner will not have been best pleased to see his famous celebration copied, the Red Devils had the last laugh. Alejandro Garnacho, Amad and Alex Telles struck in the second half to secure what was, in the end, a comfortable victory for Ten Hag’s side.
Eriksen was not the only debutant on the day, as Lisandro Martinez started in defence, fresh off his unveiling as a United player following his £55million arrival from Ajax. Upon putting pen to paper on his lucrative five-year deal, the Argentine declared he would give everything to making a success of his time at Old Trafford.
Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo crossed one billion followers across his social media accounts, aided by his newly-launched YouTube channel that has attracted more than 60 million subscribers in just over three weeks.
Ronaldo, who scored his 900th career goal last week to help Portugal beat Croatia 2-1 in the Nations League, is the first human being to reach a billion followers on social media, global media reports said.
“We’ve made history, one billion followers! This is more than just a number, it’s a testament to our shared passion, drive, and love for the game and beyond,” Ronaldo posted on X.
“You’ve been with me every step of the way, through all the highs and the lows. This journey is our journey… thank you for believing in me, for your support, and for being part of my life.”
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid player reached the milestone with over 639 million followers on Instagram, 170 million on Facebook and 113 million on X.
The 39-year-old topped Forbes’ list of highest-paid athletes this year, with off-field earnings of $60 million, boosted by his large social media following.
Ronaldo’s club Al-Nassr will host Al-Ahli in the Saudi Pro League on Friday.
-Reuters
Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo launched his YouTube channel on Wednesday and hundreds of thousands of subscribers signed up within a couple of hours.
The 39-year-old five-times Ballon D’Or winner plays for Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr.
“The wait is over. My @YouTube channel is finally here! SIUUUbscribe and join me on this new journey,” Ronaldo posted on his social media accounts.
A couple of hours after posting his first video, 1.69M subscribers had joined he channel.
Ronaldo has 112.5 million followers on the X platform, 170 million on Facebook and 636 million on Instagram.
The former Real Madrid and Manchester United player is preparing for his team’s Saudi Pro League opener against Al-Raed on Thursday.
-Reuters
Inter Miami will be the last club Argentina captain Lionel Messi plays for, the 36-year-old forward said on Wednesday, adding he feels “a little bit scared” at the thought of the day he decides to retire.
Messi, a World Cup winner with Argentina in 2022, has a contract with the Major League Soccer side until 2025 following his arrival last summer after a spell with French champions Paris St Germain.
“Inter Miami will be my last club. I love playing football. I enjoy everything even more because I am aware that there is less and less left,” Messi told ESPN.
“I’m not ready to leave football. I’ve done this all my life, I love playing football, I enjoy training, the day-to-day, the matches… And yes, there’s always a little bit of fear that it’s all over.”
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi is preparing with his national team to defend their Copa America title, with the tournament kicking off on June 20 in the United States.
Argentina will take on Canada in the opening match before facing Group A rivals Chile on June 25 and Peru four days later.
-Reuters
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