MANCHESTER UNITED boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has hinted Cristiano Ronaldo WANTED to play against West Ham on Wednesday.
The 36-year-old scored on Sunday when the two sides met at the London Stadium, helping United to a 2-1 victory.
But Ronaldo was rested for the Carabao Cup third round fixture at Old Trafford.
And Manuel Lanzini’s first half strike knocked the Red Devils out of the competition, leaving Solskjaer’s side chasing silverware in just three competitions: the Premier League, Champions League and the FA Cup.
Solskjaer has revealed that Ronaldo wanted to play against West Ham, but the boss felt it wasn’t ‘possible’.
The Norwegian told Sky Sports: ” We decided more or less before Sunday [to make changes].
“We need more players to get match fit. Alex Telles is back and has been training for a week. It will be a long season.
“Cristiano has come in and made a difference already, he wants to play as much as possible but I don’t think it is possible.
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“If you are going to be successful at the end, you need the whole squad and minutes to be shared out.”
Solksjaer also revealed that the Red Devils have played some games behind closed doors in the hope his team find their rhythm.
He added: “A risk making so many changes but we have played some games behind closed doors and hopefully we find the rhythm.”
Ronaldo is keen to win silverware with United once again, but he believes the team needs to build up a winning mentality.
He told MUTV: “As I told you before, we have huge potential.
“We have fantastic players, a good coach, a good team. We need to build up the mentality to win the Premier League and even the Champions League.
“So I am here to help the team. I think we have the 11 that are playing and those on the bench that can help as well.
“We have a good team, as I told you, and the spirit is there.”
Up next for the Red Devils is Dean Smith’s new look, Jack Grealish-less Aston Villa on Saturday.
The Villans are coming off the back of an impressive 3-0 win over Everton.
Ronaldo will almost certainly come back into Solskjaer’s starting XI as he looks to score for the fourth game in a row.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
