Manchester United tell Cristiano Ronaldo he must travel on pre-season tour despite wanting to leave: Reports

Manchester United have reportedly told Cristiano Ronaldo that he must be with the rest of the team for the upcoming pre-season tour despite his desire to leave the club.

Manchester United leave on a two-and-a-half-week tour to Thailand and Australia on Friday. New manager Erik Ten Hag and the entire squad are set to be joined by the 5-time Ballon d’Or winner. According to Mirror UK, the club have told the player that they expect him to join the squad for the pre-season tour despite him wanting to leave.

The Portuguese is currently earning around £500,0000 a week and has asked his agent Jorge Mendes to find him a new club. Ronaldo has reportedly grown disillusioned with the lack of signings at Manchester United and does not think the team is capable of challenging for the title next season.

Multiple big clubs are said to be interested, including the likes of Bayern Munich, Chelsea, and Napoli. Ronaldo scored 24 goals in all competitions last season and was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise ordinary squad that only managed to finish 6th in the EPL.

Manchester United set to lose Cristiano Ronaldo over transfer window disarray

Cristiano Ronaldo could be forgiven for being frustrated with Manchester United’s transfer dealings this summer. The club is close to signing backup 22-year-old left-back Tyrell Malacia and has failed to land deals for any of their prime targets, including Barcelona’s Frenkie De Jong.

Old Trafford has already seen a mini-exodus of players, with Edinson Cavani, Paul Pogba, Juan Mata, Jesse Lingard, and Nemanja Matic leaving the club. If Cristiano Ronaldo leaves, they will also need to sign a goalscorer as Marcus Rashford’s form took a dip last season.

Mason Greenwood is unlikely to return, and Bruno Fernandes will once again be expected to take up the bulk of the scoring. The Portuguese did not have the best of seasons last time around, and there are other areas of the pitch that also need improvement. This includes a central midfielder, a CDM, and another defensive signing on the agenda.

Cristiano Ronaldo would have been a massive influence on his younger teammates as they aim to return to the Champions League places next season. The club will need to wake up and sign a few players if the Portuguese ends up leaving.

If that does not happen, it is difficult to see what Erik Ten Hag will be able to achieve with the kind of squad he will be left with.