By Betsefy
Cristiano Ronaldo is reportedly ‘on the bus’ travelling with the rest of the Manchester United squad to the King Power Stadium for their Premier League clash against Leicester City on Thursday night.
The 37-year-old’s future at Old Trafford has been in the spotlight throughout the summer transfer window, with the forward allegedly keen to leave the club and join a team competing in the Champions League.
However, a host of top European clubs including Chelsea, Atletico Madrid, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, Napoli, AC Milan and Inter Milan are believed to have turned down the chance to sign the five-time Ballon d’Or winner, while United have no plans to let their No.7 leave this summer.
Red Devils head coach Erik ten Hag has since stated that Ronaldo is happy to stay at Old Trafford and insists that both he and the Portuguese forward are “on the same page”.
When questioned by reporters about whether he has spoken to Ronaldo about his future, Ten Hag said: “Several times, yes. We are on the same page. [He is happy to stay] otherwise he wouldn’t be here.”
© Reuters
The Dutchman added: “The way of playing, the set of demands, you can see in training Ronaldo has the ability.
“He will fit in because… I don’t have to explain, he is a great player with great capabilities. He will fit in every system and every style. We are on one page, and he knows what the demands are.”
Ronaldo’s chances of a potential departure late in the window now appear to be all but over as Sky Sports News claims that the forward is ‘on the bus’ with the rest of United’s first-team squad travelling to Leicester ahead of Thursday’s Premier League fixture.
The 189-cap Portugal international, who has less than 12 months remaining on his contract, will be hoping to force his way back into Ten Hag’s starting lineup, having started only one of United’s opening four top-flight matches so far this season.
Ronaldo played the full 90 minutes in United’s disastrous 4-0 defeat away at Brentford and has made cameo appearances as a substitute in fixtures against Brighton & Hove Albion, Liverpool and Southampton.
© Reuters
One attacking player who will not be involved at the King Power Stadium is Antony Martial, who missed the win over Southampton last weekend due to an Achilles injury.
Centre-back Victor Lindelof, meanwhile, could be in contention to feature against the Foxes after returning to training following a spell out with an injury.
“Victor Lindelof is training with the team, we will see today how far he is but just one session he was in. He was two-three weeks out. Martial is not available,” Ten Hag told reporters on Wednesday.
Deadline day signing Antony, who has joined United in a deal thought to be worth around £85m, has not been registered in time to make his debut against Leicester and will instead have to wait until Sunday to make his first appearance at home against Arsenal.
