“He would get upset” - Ex-Manchester United star on how ‘opposites’ Cristiano Ronaldo and Ruud van Nistelrooy had problems with each other

Former Manchester United midfielder Kleberson recently opened up on the tussle between Cristiano Ronaldo and Ruud van Nistelrooy during their time at the club in the 2000s. He mentioned that the two forwards often clashed on the pitch due to their different approaches to the game.

Ronaldo joined Manchester United in 2003 as an 18-year-old. Upon arriving at Old Trafford, he played alongside top stars like Van Nistelrooy. The Portuguese icon played primarily as a winger during his formative years. He loved having the ball at his feet, showcasing his speed and skillful tricks.

This style of play caused issues between him and Van Nistelrooy, according to Kleberson, who played at Old Trafford from 2003 to 2005. The ex-Brazilian star revealed that Ronaldo wanted to have fun with the ball during his early days at the club while Van Nistelrooy wanted the ball passed to him so he could score goals.

Speaking during an interview with Unibet (via GOAL), Kleberson said about the two former Manchester United stars:

“It’s not something that I saw, but those two were opposites. Ruud wanted to get the ball and shoot and Cristiano at that time wanted to get the ball and enjoy it, he wanted to have fun with the ball. It was part of his learning, and when he learned to play with the team, you saw how it helped the team.”

He further said that the Dutchman would get upset with Cristiano Ronaldo for not feeding him the ball.

“Ruud is the guy who knew the more chances that he had, the more chances he was going to score and I think he tried to talk with Cristiano to give him more opportunities to score goals, but off course he would get upset – but he’d get upset with everyone who wouldn’t pass the ball to him!” Kleberson added.

Cristiano Ronaldo would evolve to become a prolific scorer himself, scoring 145 goals and 64 assists in 346 games across two spells with the Red Devils.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, meanwhile, registered 150 goals and 29 assists in 219 appearances for the Manchester club before joining Real Madrid in 2006. He returned to the club in a managerial capacity in 2024 and is currently handling the team on an interim basis after the recent sacking of Erik ten Hag.

The two players played together 91 times for the Red Devils, registering 12 joint goals.

Journalist makes Cristiano Ronaldo claim about incoming Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim

Journalist James Horncastle has likened incoming Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim to Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese tactician is set to become the Red Devil’s next head coach from November 11 onwards.

Horncastle spoke about Amorim after he led Sporting CP to a 4-1 win over Manchester City in the Champions League on Tuesday (November 5). He likened the manager’s move to Old Trafford to that of Ronaldo in 2003, saying (via TEAMtalk):

"Go back to United’s history… who did they find at Sporting? They found Cristiano, didn’t they. Have they found the Cristiano of managers? That’s what they’ll all be hoping. On the basis of a performance like that, I think United fans have got every reason to be excited."

Cristiano Ronaldo helped Manchester United to three league titles and the UEFA Champions League trophy. Given the club’s current struggles, Amorim is expected to turn the tide and achieve titles in the future.