"Living the dream" - Alejandro Garnacho pays tribute to Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo 

Manchester United youngster Alejandro Garnacho has paid tribute to his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, via an Instagram post. He stated that it was a dream come true for him to play alongside the Portuguese.

Ronaldo, whose future is very much in the air (via the Mirror), rejoined Manchester United’s team training in the final week of July. The 37-year-old did not travel to Spain to take on Atletico Madrid on July 30, but started in the friendly against Rayo Vallecano at Old Trafford the following day.

Garnacho was also a part of the starting XI, making it the first time the Argentine lined up alongside the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.

The 17-year-old felt privileged in being able to play alongside the Manchester United No. 7 and took to Instagram to share his happiness with the world.

Here’s what his post read:

“Living the dream. 💭❤️

@cristiano Idol…🐐👑”

Ronaldo was not at his best in the 1-1 draw with Rayo, failing to lodge even a single shot on target before being hooked at half time.

Garnacho, on the other hand, approached the game full of vigor and was adjudged the ‘Man of the Match’ for his brilliant display. The teenager scored seven goals in the FA Youth Cup to fire Manchester United to the trophy last season.

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Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo is the most abused footballer in the Premier League

According to a survey conducted by the Alan Turing Institute in association with Ofcom in the first half of the 2021-22 season, Ronaldo is the most abused player in England.

In the first half of the 2021-22 Premier League campaign, Ronaldo received 12,520 abusive tweets, 3566 more than the second player on the list, Harry Maguire (via ESPN).

The statistics come as a surprise, as Ronaldo was by far the Red Devils’ best player in the 2021-22 season. He scored 24 goals in 38 games across competitions, emerging as the team’s leading goalscorer.

Out of his 24 goals, 18 came in the Premier League (30 matches), making him the division’s third-highest goalscorer behind Liverpool's Mohamed Salah and Tottenham Hotspur's Heung-min Son (both 23).

Unfortunately, despite his best attempts, United finished sixth, thus missing out on Champions League qualification.

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