"It is very harsh" - Teddy Sheringham defends Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo's performances this season

Former England striker Teddy Sheringham has defended Manchester United attacker Cristiano Ronaldo's performances this season.

The Portuguese superstar has enjoyed a pretty impressive season at Old Trafford this campaign for an otherwise struggling Manchester United side.

The 37-year-old has scored 24 goals and provided three assists in 39 games across all competitions for the Red Devils this season.

Despite the five-time Ballon d'Or winner scoring the majority of their goals this season, many have labelled him as the main problem at Manchester United.

Sheringham has insisted that the Portuguese international is not at all a problem for his former club.

The former Tottenham Hotspur forward added that Ronaldo is not a natural number nine but his goalscoring numbers are incredible.

The 56-year-old told the Manchester Evening News:

“I think that it is very harsh to label him that [the problem]. I think you have to change your style of play if you’re going to play with Ronaldo, because even now, this late in his career, he is not really an out-and-out No. 9."

“Of course, he is an unbelievable talent and you have to build your team around him and feed him with the ball. That is the best way to do it.”

Sheringham stressed that Ronaldo is the only goalscoring outlet the Red Devils had this season and that they must bring in more options this summer. Sheringham added:

“If you’re leaving the club with just Ronaldo, he is not a winger anymore, he is not a No. 10 and he is not a No. 9, but he scores goals. He is unbelievable."

“If Ronaldo is the only one you have got, you need two or three to come in. I don’t know how much money they’re going to be spending but if you have only got Ronaldo you need quite a few around you to bolster that squad.”

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Cristiano Ronaldo will be a key player for Manchester United next season

With a new manager in Erik ten Hag set to take charge in the summer, Manchester United will be going through a rebuilding phase for some time.

We will have to wait and see how long the phase lasts for the Red Devils but during that time, Ronaldo's individual brilliance could prove to be a huge asset for them.

Now 37, the Portuguese is clearly not the player he used to be, but he is still incredible at what he does.

Transition periods often hurt clubs badly but Ronaldo, on his own, can ease the situation for Manchester United.