Definitely not on the level of our current squad – Erik ten Hag on Cristiano Ronaldo’s fitness

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has commented on Cristiano Ronaldo fitness after he rejoined the club. Amid a lot of uncertainty regarding his future at Old Trafford, Ronaldo finally played for Manchester United in their club friendly against Rayo Vallecano.

Putting all the speculations to rest, Ronaldo had tweeted, “Sunday the king plays”. Meanwhile, Ronaldo had missed the preseason matches when the Red Devils toured Thailand and Australia. The Portuguese had missed the tour citing personal reasons as his future at the club was unclear.

As Ronaldo didn’t take part in these matches, Erik Ten Hag reckons his fitness level is not up on the level of the current squad. The Dutchman feels the talisman will need some games to get back to his high level of fitness, which he always likes to maintain.

Erik Ten Hag said while talking to Sky Sports as quoted by the Mirror when he was asked about his physical fitness, “I cannot tell in this moment. He is definitely not on the level of our current squad, because he missed a lot of week. So he needs games and he needs a lot of training.”

On the other hand, Manchester United has had a good run in the preseason. The Red Devils started by beating Liverpool 4-0 in Thailand and then they registered a 4-1 win against Australian club Melbourne Victory. Subsequently, they defeated Crystal Palace by 3-1 but then shared the spoils against Aston Villa with a 2-2 draw.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo was the team’s top-performer in the previous season as he had scored 24 goals in 38 matches across all competitions. Thus, the talisman had delivered the goods and he will look to be at his best for the club in the upcoming season.