'If he was here...': Man Utd fans react to Cristiano Ronaldo's absence in Chelsea tie

Portuguese football sensation Cristiano Ronaldo was a notable absentee from the Manchester United team, which traveled to the Stamford Bridge for Saturday night’s Premier League 2022-23 match against Chelsea. In the match, Chelsea opened the scoresheet in the 87th minute after Jorginho converted a penalty shot. The game ended in a 1-1 draw after Casemiro scored an injury-time header and grabbed valuable points for the Old Trafford-based team.

Meanwhile, despite absence, Ronaldo remained the most talked-about player from Manchester United throughout the weekend due to his decision to leave the field before final whistle during Tottenham tie. In the pre-match conference ahead of the Chelsea match, United head coach Erik ten Hag revealed Ronaldo has been excluded from Saturday’s squad as a 'punishment' for walking off the field before the game had even ended. 

Fans divided over Cristiano Ronaldo's 'axing' ahead of Man Utd vs Chelsea

Ronaldo apologised for his actions with an Instagram post and still continued to remain in headlines as United faced Chelsea on Saturday. There was a clear divide among football fans on social media regarding their opinion of the 37-year-old soccer superstar. While a section of fans said United could have won the match if Ronaldo was there, other fans had contrasting views. 

“Deserved more than a draw. The build up has been a bit slow at times. But none the less very proud of our boys in Red. Hoping Ronaldo and Erik work out a synergy sooner than later. They both need each other. United will keep getting better. Believe!,” a fan wrote on Twitter. “You wanted us to lose so bad so you could rub Ronaldo's absence in our faces but we managed to get a draw. What's the fuss about?” wrote another. There were many other interesting reactions about Ronaldo’s absence from the match on social media.

Roy Keane and Gary Neville discuss Cristiano Ronaldo's absence

Meanwhile, former footballer Roy Keane and Gary Neville were also involved in a heated debate while speaking about United’s axing of Ronaldo. As per Manchester Evening News, both individuals agreed on the club’s decision to take action, Keane and Neville disagreed on whether he was worth being axed. “He certainly feels what’s gone on, he’s been unfairly treated. If you feel that as a senior pro there’s a justified anger, you’re going to react that way but he’s got flaws like we all have,” Keane said.

At the same time, Neville explained that Ronaldo will have change his mindset to keep playing at the top level. “What’s important to Cristiano is he wants to keep scoring at the highest level. He wants to play in the Champions League because that record he has, he’s 10 to 12 [goals] ahead of Messi, that’s so important to him,” Neville said.