Man United Boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer Hits Back at Rio Ferdinand Over Cristiano Ronaldo Comments

Portuguese talisman Cristiano Ronaldo's surprise return to Manchester United, 12 years after leaving for Real Madrid, has created a huge amount of buzz around the English giants. Several pundits have even backed Ole Gunnar Solskjær's side to end their eight-year trophy drought in the Premier League after CR7's arrival at Old Trafford.

Man United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær slammed Rio Ferdinand after the former England defender made a stunning claim about five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo during the Red Devils' 2-1 loss in their Champions League opener on Tuesday.

Ferdinand had alleged that instead of Solskjaer, it was CR7 who was managing the team from the touchline, particularly in the second half against Switzerland's Young Boys; the Norwegian brushed his comments aside.

"Rio, again, sometimes he comments on things he doesn't really know," Solskjaer said of Ferdinand, who was his team-mate at United.

"It should have been a yellow card for Martins Pereira when he brought down Nemanja Matic. Both Bruno [Fernandes] and Cristiano, as competitive as they are, suddenly I had them on my shoulder."

"They were there for a brief spell and shouted to the referee. That was the aggravation of getting a few bad decisions against us. But then Cristiano sat down, Bruno sat down. We know only one man is allowed in that technical area and that’s either me or Carras [Michael Carrick], Mick [Phelan] or Kieran [McKenna]," Solskjaer added.

"It was just spur of the moment, he should have been sent off, so I don't have any problem with them showing some passion and then going back down. It’s not like he [Ronaldo] was coaching the players, no," the Man United manager concluded.

While Ronaldo gave the Red Devils a 1-0 lead in the 13th minute with a beautiful goal, it wasn't enough, as the Young Boys' tore through their defence, subsequently winning the game with some help from Jesse Lingard, who couldn't keep possession of the ball with him.

Despite Ronaldo's brilliant display in the first half, Solskjaer chose to substitute him in the second, and the fans dubbed it as a "tactical blunder".

While the team's shock loss made headlines, it was Ronaldo's actions which got immediate attention, as the 36-year-football superstar was seen making gestures from the sidelines.

Ferdinand was particularly critical of Ronaldo as he felt like he was acting like a coach.

"If I'm the manager, I've got to be honest, I'm telling him to sit down," Ferdinand told British Sports Network on Saturday. "I get it. You know, with Cristiano people go, 'Oh it's bravado, it's for the fans'. He's just a passionate guy. He wants to win, he's desperate to win, and he can't hold it in," he opined.

"If that means he has to go up there and stand next to the manager, shouting instructions etc etc, so be it. When it's someone of his standing and stature in the game how can you argue with it?"

After an unexpected loss in the Champions League, United will look to make amends and target a victory in their next Premier League game against West Ham on Sunday.