Manchester United is about face another misery, as they are going to face Barcelona in the Europa League play-off draw in February. After the team struggled against Aston Villa, Cristiano Ronaldo again faced criticism for his lack of goals.
Cristiano Ronaldo had a frustrating game yesterday, which ended up with a fight on the field against Mings. Manchester United has lost nine away games in the English Premier League in 2022.
Erik Ten Hag also criticised his team’s tactical approach which did not help Cristiano Ronaldo up front. Ten Hag said: “No, I think it was stupid to do that. We delivered too quickly crosses in from too far and too forcing. Then, we don’t help him. We have to bring in the crosses at the right moment.”
He also pointed out the particular faults and explained them to the reporters. He said: “I think in the second half also we bring too quickly the crosses in. The right moment was from Christian Eriksen in the first half and he found the moment in the pocket to deliver the ball to Cristiano at the far post. That was the right moment.”
Xavi’s Comments on Cristiano Ronaldo
On the other hand, Barcelona has suffered again in their Champions League journey. They have suffered the same fate as the previous season. After getting relegated to Europa League, they may have a chance to bag a European trophy again.
Barcelona has world-class players like Lewandowski, Gavi, Pedri, and Raphinha. But the team did underperform against the European giants like Bayern and Inter. But Barcelona is currently leading the La Liga table with 34 points. Barca’s new arrival Lewandowski is also the top scorer in the League. Ousmane Dembele is also leading in assist.
This will be the perfect chance for Xavi to finish this season with a major European trophy. But the manager thinks otherwise.
After the draw, Barcelona manager Xavi said: “We will have to compete, going to Manchester against a really top rival and a historic side which has grown a lot with the arrival of (Erik) Ten Hag.”
Xavi also spoke individually about his former opponent, Cristiano Ronaldo. As reported by Fabrizio Ramano, Xavi said: “He seems to me to be a great player, he has marked an era in world football and can still make a difference”.
Cristiano Ronaldo is always a force to be reckoned with in the case of the European Leagues. The former Madrid man dominated Barca’s defense whenever he met against them.
He even won the Man of the Match when he last time met the Camp Nou side. As the top scorer with the most goals against Barcelona, He is ranked second with 20 goals.
