Man City legend says Blues tricked Manchester United into making Cristiano Ronaldo 'mistake'

Manchester City legend Shaun Goater claims his former side tricked Manchester United into signing Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ronaldo made his return to Old Trafford last summer, 12 years on from his departure from the club. Before completing the move to United, the Portuguese ace had looked set to join rivals City, only for United to step in to prevent the five-time Ballon d’Or winner from moving to their neighbours.

Since returning to United, Ronaldo has been in solid goalscoring form, scoring 18 goals in 32 games across all competitions. But his goals haven't helped United challenge for major honours as they had hoped.

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Questions have been asked about his ability to fit into a modern system, with interim boss Ralf Rangnick looking to integrate a pressing style. Rumours have also been rife of splits within the dressing room involving Ronaldo.

And Goater feels United made a mistake in bringing the 37-year-old back last year. There has been speculation over Ronaldo’s future ahead of the summer, despite the Portugal international signing a two-year deal.

“I’ve got to be honest, I never thought Cristiano Ronaldo’s return was going to be a great thing for Manchester United,” Goater told Ladbrokes (via Metro ).

“I knew he’d score goals, but I also knew that he’d take away from the shine of the future, and the youngsters they have. I didn’t think the rest of the team would score goals as a direct result of him signing; someone was going to suffer.

“That balance had to work, and I don’t think it has. If Ronaldo was told ‘look, use your experience, you’re obviously a key player and you’re going to have plenty of game-time, but a key part of this project