Sir Alex Ferguson on Cristiano Ronaldo benching at Man Utd: 'You should always start with your best players'
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Updated 05/10/2021 at 08:00 GMT
The video, which was posted on Nurmagomedov's Instagram account, showed that Ferguson gave his verdict on the benching of Ronaldo, suggesting that Benitez's side would have been given a boost "when they saw Ronaldo wasn't playing". Ronaldo did not appear for United until the 57th minute of the match, and the discussion with Nurmagomedov revealed Ferguson's thoughts.
Solskjaer defends decision to bench Ronaldo in United's draw with Everton
Legendary former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has been filmed saying "you should always start with your best players" in reference to Cristiano Ronaldo.
Recorded while in a conversation with former UFC champion Khabib Nurmagomedov at Old Trafford, Ferguson spoke openly about his former player after he stormed down the tunnel at full-time, having come on as a second-half substitute in the 1-1 draw with Everton.
The video, which was posted on Nurmagomedov's Instagram account, showed Ferguson giving his verdict on the benching of the superstar, suggesting that Rafael Benitez's side would have been given a boost "when they saw Ronaldo wasn't playing".
Ronaldo did not appear for United until the 57th minute of the match, and the discussion with Nurmagomedov continued as Ferguson delivered his opinion that "you should always start with your best players".
Solskjaer rested Jadon Sancho, Paul Pogba and Ronaldo as United dropped more points at home, and he was forced to defend the decisions after the match.
"You make decisions throughout a long, long season," Solskjaer said when asked about keeping Ronaldo confined to the bench.
"You have got to manage the players' workload, and that was... the decision was, for me, the correct one.
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Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
Image credit: Getty Images
"Anthony Martial came on, did well. Scored a good goal. Edinson [Cavani] needed minutes. He got an hour. Could have had a good goal. Great cross and great chance for him. So, we have to make those decisions at times.
"We did have enough players behind the ball. We [made] a couple of bad decisions which cost us in those 10 seconds or whatever, that counter-attack. We were well enough organised behind the ball, but we should have dealt with the danger better."
United are now in fourth place in the Premier League table and level on points with Everton and Brighton, who are below them on goal difference, while rivals City are above them. Chelsea are top of the standings with a two-point advantage over Solskjaer's side.
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