Manchester United hold talks with Premier League forward and will not ‘convince’ Cristiano Ronaldo to stay if he wants to leave club: Reports

Manchester United are reportedly open to letting Cristiano Ronaldo leave the club if he decides to do so in the summer, and are interested in Everton forward Richarlison to potentially replace the Portuguese superstar.

According to CaughtOffside, Manchester United will not stop Cristiano Ronaldo from leaving the club in the summer. The Portuguese superstar has struggled since the appointment of Ralf Rangnick and could potentially be looking to depart the club at the end of the season.

The report states that the Red Devils have no intention of trying to convince the forward to stay and will pursue Everton star Richarlison to replace Ronaldo. According to Matt Judge, United have already met with the Brazilian's representatives with regards to a potential summer move.

The forward will reportedly cost the Red Devils between £60 million and £70 million in the summer. Richarlison has scored four goals and provided three assists in 18 league appearances for Everton so far this season.

Cristiano Ronaldo has faltered for Manchester United recently

Ronaldo has been disappointing recently

Cristiano Ronaldo started the season off on fire for Manchester United but has been in disappointing form since Ralf Rangnick took over the club. The Portuguese superstar has been the club's top scorer this campaign, having scored 15 goals in 30 appearances across all competitions.

However, the forward has only managed one goal in his last ten appearances across all competitions in 2022. Ronaldo has seemingly struggled to adapt to Ralf Rangnick's system. The Portuguese superstar missed the Manchester Derby over the weekend with a suspected injury but Roy Keane casted doubt over the legitimacy of the injury. He said after the game:

"We talk about Ronaldo being some sort of machine, he's very arely injured and then every now and again he comes out... and says hip flexor. It doesn’t add up to me."

However, Rangnick was quick to shut down those rumours. He said:

"I have to believe my medical department. My doctor came to see me on Friday morning before training and told me Cristiano Ronaldo cannot train because of some problems with his hip flexor and the same was true on Saturday and that's why he couldn't be part of the squad."