Cristiano Ronaldo is a test of Erik ten Hag's nerve now Manchester United have Anthony Martial back

Manchester United media staff tend to jot down notes during a game to prepare for a possible post-match inquest and Cristiano Ronaldo's name may have been scrawled on the top of their notepads at the Etihad.

United were thrashed 6-3 and were 6-1 down at one stage but Ronaldo's status as an unused substitute was undeniably newsworthy, especially as Erik ten Hag used all five of his allocated changes.

The topic of Ronaldo arose in the sixth question of Erik ten Hag's press conference: "I appreciate Anthony Martial came on, did well, scored twice, but is Cristiano Ronaldo going to be a third-choice striker for you now, going forward?"

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"I wouldn't bring him in because out of respect for Cristiano, for his big career," Ten Hag said. "And the other thing was the advantage I could bring Anthony Martial, he needs the minutes but I don't want to point it out like that."

Whatever Ten Hag's reply, it would have unsatisfied plenty of United fans and every ardent Ronaldo follower. When it was suggested Ronaldo must be miffed to have stayed in the dugout, a source close to the Portuguese half-joked, "Or not!"

For Ronaldo was not subjected to the humiliation of United's latest thrashing, the eighth time they have conceded at least four goals in their last 38 Premier League fixtures. It will have smart, though. The last time Ronaldo was not made use of was when he was at Juventus in May 2021.

The galling reality for Ronaldo is Ten Hag favours the younger and more flexible forwards in his squad. Jadon Sancho, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford was the attacking triumvirate in pre-season Anthony Elanga started ahead of Ronaldo against Liverpool, Southampton and Leicester.

By showing Ronaldo