Cristiano Ronaldo has made a brilliant gesture ahead of Manchester United’s youth side taking to the field in their cup final on Wednesday night.
The veteran forward has been a rare shining light in a dismal season for the Red Devils’ senior side, winning the April player of the month for his five goals despite his side winning just one game through the month.
And his influence has been evident off the pitch too, as Manchester Evening News reporter Samuel Luckhurst has revealed.
Ahead of the youth cup final, the Portuguese star sent a video message to the United side which was played in the dressing room before the encounter.
Cristiano Ronaldo sent a video message to the Youth Cup team before the final last night. It was played when they were in the dressing room before the game and, needless, to say, went down well and was as motivational as #mufc hoped it would be.
— Samuel Luckhurst (@samuelluckhurst) May 12, 2022
It had the desired effect, too with the young Red Devils showing the senior side how to win trophies this season with a victory at Old Trafford against Nottingham Forest.
Man United have won the FA Youth Cup for the eleventh time in front of 67,000 fans in attendance! 🔴🏆
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) May 11, 2022
Manchester United seeking rebuild
The senior side are seeking a major rebuild this summer with the impending arrival of Erik ten Hag from Ajax, and with plenty of players leaving the club for free as their contract comes to an end.
Ronaldo seems certain to be a part of it too, despite Manchester United dropping out of the Champions League next season, and handing Ronaldo his first season in either Europa or Europa Conference League football.
Who else will join him in a new-look Manchester United remains to be seen, however.
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Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Manchester City | 35 | 68 | 86 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 36 | 65 | 86 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 35 | 39 | 67 |
| 4 | Arsenal FC | 35 | 14 | 66 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 35 | 20 | 62 |
| 6 | Manchester United | 37 | 1 | 58 |
| 7 | West Ham United | 36 | 11 | 55 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 35 | 1 | 50 |
| 9 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 36 | -4 | 47 |
| 10 | Crystal Palace | 35 | 4 | 44 |
| 11 | Aston Villa | 35 | -1 | 43 |
| 12 | Brentford FC | 36 | -8 | 43 |
| 13 | Newcastle United | 36 | -21 | 43 |
| 14 | Leicester City | 34 | -7 | 42 |
| 15th | Southampton FC | 36 | -20 | 40 |
| 16 | Everton FC | 34 | -19 | 35 |
| 17 | Burnley FC | 35 | -17 | 34 |
| 18 | Leeds United | 35 | -35 | 34 |
| 19 | Watford FC | 35 | -38 | 22 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 35 | -53 | 21 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 22 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 20 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 18 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 15th |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 15th |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 15th |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 13 |
| Sterling, Raheem | Manchester City | 13 |
| Zaha, Wilfried | Crystal Palace | 13 |
| Tony, Ivan | Brentford FC | 12 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 12 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 11 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 11 |
| Mahrez, Riyad | Manchester City | 11 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 10 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 10 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 10 |
| Pukki, Teemu | Norwich City | 10 |
| Rafinha | Leeds United | 10 |
| Smith-Rowe, Emile | Arsenal FC | 10 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brownhill, Josh | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
| Bednarek, Jan | Southampton FC | 0 | 10 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 10 |
| Bissouma, Yves | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 10 |
| Firpo, Junior | Leeds United | 0 | 10 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 9 |
| Neves, Ruben | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | 9 |
| Mings, Tyrone | Aston Villa | 0 | 9 |
| Xhaka, Granit | Arsenal FC | 1 | 8 |
| Mctominay, Scott | Manchester United | 0 | 9 |
| Salisu, Mohammed | Southampton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 0 | 8 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 7 |
| Richarlison | Everton FC | 0 | 8 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 1 | 7 |
| James, Daniel | Leeds United | 1 | 7 |
| Alonso, Marcos | Chelsea FC | 0 | 8 |
| Moreno, Rodrigo | Leeds United | 0 | 8 |
| McGinn, John | Aston Villa | 0 | 8 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 13 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 12 |
| Mount, Mason | Chelsea FC | 10 |
| Bowen, Jarrod | West Ham United | 10 |
| Robertson, Andy | Liverpool FC | 10 |
| Kane, Harry | Tottenham Hotspur | 9 |
| Barnes, Harvey | Leicester City | 9 |
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 9 |
| Cancelo, Joao | Manchester City | 9 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 8 |
| Kulusevski, Dejan | Tottenham Hotspur | 8 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 |
| De Bruyne, Kevin | Manchester City | 7 |
| Lacazette, Alexandre | Arsenal FC | 7 |
| James, Rece | Chelsea FC | 7 |
| Mbeumo, Bryan | Brentford FC | 7 |
| Saka, Bukayo | Arsenal FC | 6 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 6 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 6 |
| Antonio, Michael | West Ham United | 6 |