Roy Keane defends Cristiano Ronaldo after Tottenham walkout
By Henry Burt
Roy Keane came to the defence of Cristiano Ronaldo as the Manchester United star received further criticism for his refusal to come on as a substitute during Wednesday's game against Spurs.
Ronaldo, who has struggled for playing time this season under new United boss Erik ten Hag, was seen walking out of the game at Old Trafford before the full-time whistle and the Dutch manager later confirmed that the striker had been asked to come on and refused.
It was the second time during Ten Hag's time at the club that Ronaldo has left a game early, having previously left at half-time during a pre-season friendly.
Ronaldo is also known to have left games early at former club Juventus under the management of both Maurizio Sarri and Andrea Pirlo, having been substituted before full-time by both managers.
Nevertheless, former United captain Keane was quick to jump to Ronaldo's defence following the clash with Chelsea on Saturday night, getting into a heated dispute with fellow pundit and former teammate Gary Neville.
"There's players at Man United who have done a lot worse than he's done," Keane insisted on Sky Sports.
"You know Paul Scholes. He refused to play for Man United. He got fined 2 weeks' wages but he found his way back.
"Rio Ferdinand missed a drugs test, he got banned for eight months."
Neville took the opposite view, claiming: "There aren't many Manchester United fans right now who would take Cristiano Ronaldo in their starting 11.
"They're better without him, they score more goals without him and they win more games without him. That's a fact - he's just got to get used to that."
Ronaldo's future at Old Trafford has cast a shadow over United's season so far, with the Portuguese allegedly unhappy at his lack of gametime under Ten Hag.
The forward also attempted to force a move away from the club in the summer, but no such move materialised.
Despite this turbulence, United have enjoyed a solid start to the season under their new manager and currently sit in fifth place in the Premier League table.