Cristiano Ronaldo arrives at Manchester United training ground to discuss future

Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo at Carrington Training Ground, Manchester. Picture date: Tuesday July 26, 2022.


Cristiano Ronaldo has arrived at Manchester United’s training ground to discuss his future at the club.

Ronaldo arrived with his agent Jorge Mendes at Carrington on Tuesday morning ahead of talks with manager Erik ten Hag.

The Portugal forward missed United’s pre-season tour to Thailand and Australia because of personal reasons amid speculation over his future.

New boss Ten Hag has previously said the 37-year-old is “not for sale” and “in our plans”, but it has been reported that Ronaldo wants to play Champions League football.

United failed to qualify for this season’s Champions League after finishing sixth in the Premier League last term.

Ten Hag’s team instead will compete in the Europa League this season.

Ronaldo has a year left on his United contract after rejoining from Juventus last August.

He made his name at United after signing from Sporting Lisbon in 2003, spending six years at Old Trafford before joining Real Madrid for a then-world record transfer fee of £80million.

Ronaldo, who was United’s top scorer with 24 goals last season, has been training at the Portuguese national team’s headquarters in Lisbon.

United start their Premier League campaign at home to Brighton on August 7 after final pre-season games this weekend against Atletico Madrid in Norway and Rayo Vallecano at Old Trafford.

There were other arrivals at the United training ground today.

Lisandro Martinez was pictured arriving ahead of his official unveiling as a Manchester United player.

The Argentine defender, 24, was spotted outside the Trafford Training Centre on Tuesday morning, catching a ride with another of United’s summer signings in Christian Eriksen.

Despite strong interest from Arsenal and a long drawn-out transfer saga, United finally won the race for Martinez last week, announcing they had reached an agreement with Ajax over a deal believed to be worth an initial £48.5million plus a potential further £8.5m in add-ons.

The centre-back was expected to pen a five-year contract at Old Trafford with the option for a further 12 months, with the transfer subject to the usual medical and visa requirements.

Martinez will reunite with Ten Hag at United, with the duo having also worked together at Ajax, winning the Eredivisie title last term and only being denied a domestic double with defeat by rivals PSV Eindhoven in the KNVB Cup Final.

Martinez made 118 appearances in total for the Dutch giants after joining from Argentine oufit Defensa y Justicia in 2019, scoring six goals.

He has also earned seven senior international caps for Argentina to date and was part of the Albiceleste squad who won the Copa America last summer - their first major title for almost 30 years.

Martinez is United’s third signing so far under Ten Hag, following Danish playmaker Eriksen and Dutch left-back Tyrell Malacia.

Depending on when his transfer is confirmed, he could hope to feature in Saturday’s penultimate pre-season friendly against Atletico Madrid in Oslo.

United also host Rayo Vallecano in Ten Hag’s Old Trafford debut on Sunday before entertaining Brighton in their 2022/23 Premier League opener on August 7.

The Red Devils ended their tour of Australia with a rain-soaked, last-gasp 2-2 draw with Aston Villa at the weekend, following on from wins over Crystal Palace and Melbourne Victory. Ten Hag’s side also thrashed Liverpool 4-0 in Thailand earlier this month.

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