Erik Ten Hag is confident that Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo will extend his contract at the club despite absent from training.
Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag is confident that United No.7 Cristiano Ronaldo will extend his contract at the club.
The Portuguese his yet to resume training with the club following his claim that he needed to attend to family issue.
There are speculations that Ronaldo want to move away from the club this summer because of their Champions League football.
But Ten Hag has ruled out that Ronaldo will leave the club this summer as he believes he will further extend his contract.
“I am well informed he also has an option [to extend his contract until 2024] no?” Ten Hag said.
“Of course I have signed here for three years, but in football it’s short-term as well. We have to win from the start. So I don’t look that far ahead. I have a strategy, it’s a process, it takes time, but in the end we have to make sure from the outset there is a winning team.”
Ten Hag admitted he doesn’t know when the striker will report back but has not ruled out the Portugal forward getting involve in the first Premier League game of the season.
“He is training,” Ten Hag said. “I think we all know Ronaldo is a top professional and he will be fit, that is the last concern I have.”
Ronaldo scored 24 goals last season but remained at the centre of a debate about whether he could play in a team built to press the opposition.
Ten Hag also wants his team to press effectively but said he has no concerns about whether United’s No. 7 can do the job.
“I think Cristiano is capable of doing that,” Ten Hag added. “In his career he has shown everything.
“I have set my demand. We want to play in a certain way. A top player can contribute and Ronaldo is an absolute top player in our squad.
“The players dictate the way you play. Especially players who score goals because they are extremely important for a team. You construct your team around them.”
