DANNY MUPRHY: Manchester United may have to sell Ronaldo to progress

Something radical needs to change at Manchester United even if it means important players like Cristiano Ronaldo being sold.

You have to be careful dealing with superstars on big contracts, it’s better to find other takers before you fall out with them. 

But the bigger picture is that United have gone five years without a trophy and need to back a top manager who is there for the long haul, whether it be Thomas Tuchel, Mauricio Pochettino or someone else. Those guys will want to do things their own way and a clear-out makes sense, headed by Paul Pogba and Ronaldo.

You can’t question Ronaldo’s quality but he’s 37 and, despite his goals, United don’t have balance as a team. 

They rely on Ronaldo’s individual brilliance, which can work in some games, like Tottenham last Saturday, but doesn’t against the best teams in the Premier League and Champions League. 

Manchester City and Liverpool have pushed the bar so high, United need both world-class ability and incredible physical output to compete and the latter isn’t in Ronaldo’s game any more.

Paris Saint-Germain are in a similar predicament. They have arguably the best players in the world but still lose to better team units. Real Madrid steamrollered them and they are out of the Champions League, just like United. 

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