"Should be leaving the club" - Victor Ikpeba explains why Cristiano Ronaldo's Manchester United return was a mistake

Nigeria's legendary striker Victor Ikpeba feels Cristiano Ronaldo made a mistake by choosing to return to Manchester United last summer. The37-year-old forward left Juventus in 2021, after a three-year spell in Serie A.

Ronaldo is currently the third-highest goal scorer in the Premier League this season. He has scored 22 goals overall for the Red Devils this season, including two hat-tricks (against Norwich City and Tottenham Hotspur).

Despite Ronaldo's individual brilliance, Manchester United have failed to deliver as a club this season. They are out of all cup competitions and are struggling to finish in the top four in the Premier League.

The board parted ways with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer last November. He was replaced by German tactician Ralf Rangnick on an interim basis, who has not managed to lift United's game since.

The German will see his job go to Erik ten Hag this summer, with Rangnick set to take over the consultancy role at the club. The German coach feels that the club needs a major overhaul to compete with the best in Europe.

Whether Ronaldo will be a part of that overhaul given his age, remains to be seen. However, former Borussia Dortmund forward Ikpeba feels that the 37-year-old should leave Old Trafford this summer.

Ikepeba told the Daily Post Nigeria:

“I think he [Ronaldo] should be leaving the club. Ronaldo coming back to Manchester United was a mistake. It’s not a question of him scoring goals, so many things happen when a star player returns to his original club.''

The Nigerian forward believes Ronaldo's success, brilliance, fame and stardom has not helped United. He instead suggested the Portuguese forward to join Manchester City.

“In many ways, Ronaldo has been a distraction. He’s a global star in football, he shouldn’t have come back at that age, he should have gone to Manchester City. Egocentric players, jealousy comes to play in the dressing room. The atmosphere has been nasty right from the beginning.”

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Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is four goals away from yet another record

Cristiano Ronaldo is currently four goals shy of scoring 700 club goals in his professional career. He is already the highest international scorer and highest all-time scorer with 811 strikes to his name.

The Red Devils will host Chelsea on Friday at Old Trafford as they fight for fourth spot in the table. Including the game against Chelsea, Ronaldo has four games in hand to achieve the record before the current season ends.