“That is your assumption” – Erik ten Hag opens up on conversations with Cristiano Ronaldo amid talk of Manchester United exit

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has claimed that Cristiano Ronaldo is yet to inform him of his alleged desire to leave Old Trafford this summer.

Speculation surrounding Ronaldo's future at the club following their sixth-placed finish last season has been rife. The 37-year-old striker supposedly wants to leave United and clubs such as Chelsea, Bayern Munich, and Atletico Madrid have been linked with him in the past.

However, Ten Hag has revealed that Ronaldo hasn't informed him of any such plans to leave the Red Devils. The Dutchman made the revelation at a press conference ahead of the Premier League game against Brentford on Saturday, August 13.

The Portugal international is fit and in contention to feature against the Bees at the Gtech Community Stadium. When asked whether it would be wise on the team's part to start a player who wants to leave the club, Ten Hag said (h/t MEN):

"That is your assumption. That is not what he is telling me. So I deal with the players we have and we plan with him for this season and we are happy with him and we have to fit him into the team. So he has to come at the right fitness levels so that he can do the job that we expect him to do."

The 52-year-old added that Ronaldo continues to be a part of his plans. He said:

"In every press conference, we already confirmed that he is in our plans. We plan with him so we also plan around him."

The former Real Madrid forward signed a two-year contract at Manchester United last summer, with an option to extend it by another year.

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Should Ronaldo start for Manchester United against Brentford?

Ronaldo is arguably Manchester United's best striker right now. He finished as the club's top scorer last season after scoring 24 goals in 38 appearances across all competitions.

Anthony Martial's latest hamstring injury came at the worst possible time for the Frenchman after his impressive pre-season form. He scored three goals in five games last month but is unavailable to play against Brentford.

Marcus Rashford's form continues to raise question marks over his place in United's starting XI along with his recent links to Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). Hence, Ten Hag may not have the luxury of sending a message by benching Ronaldo.

He is already under pressure after a 2-1 loss against Brighton & Hove Albion in their opening game of the Premier League season on August 7. Ronaldo did not start against the Seagulls and came on in the 53rd minute when the score was 2-0.