London, Aug 7 (BUS) – Former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney believes the club should let Cristiano Ronaldo leave if it is to build a successful squad for the future under new coach Erik ten Hag.
It was reported that the 37-year-old Ronaldo, who signed for United from Juventus last season, wants to move away from Old Trafford after the team failed to qualify for the Champions League.
Rooney, who now manages the NFL team DC United, wrote in a column for The Times.
“Rooney will always score your goals. But my personal opinion is that United are not ready to challenge for the title now, so the goal should be to build a team that can win the league in the next three to four years, and you have to plan for that.”
Ronaldo scored 24 goals in all competitions last season, and emerged as one of the few luminous sparks in a forgotten campaign for Manchester United, where they finished sixth.
This week, Ten Hag said he was happy to have a “big striker” like Ronaldo in the squad and was looking forward to working with him.
Rooney, Manchester United’s all-time top scorer, added that he hopes Tin Hag can establish a clear playing style at his former club.
“I couldn’t tell what they were trying to do in terms of the game plan, or see any patterns of play,” Rooney said of last season.
“I think one of the big things you’ll see from Ten Hag is that he’s really trying to put his stamp on his playing identity.”
United kicked off their Premier League campaign at home to Brighton & Hove Albion later on Sunday.