Cristiano Ronaldo's exit bombshell timing has inadvertently given Liverpool the upper hand

Cristiano Ronaldo has hit the headlines once again after it was revealed the forward wants to leave Manchester United this summer.

The Portugal international has requested to leave Old Trafford in the current window with the hope that a suitable offer is lodged for his services and he will be allowed to wave goodbye to the club despite re-signing just a year ago. Speculation has been building regarding his long-term commitment to the Red Devils with Ronaldo left “shocked and disappointed” by their performances since returning to the club.

In the meantime, he has been linked with re-joining Real Madrid after they failed in their pursuit of Kylian Mbappe, while Chelsea, Napoli and Bayern Munich remain keen. Although Erik ten Hag is expected to make wholesale changes to the club’s playing style and culture, Ronaldo has been underwhelmed with their lack of transfer business and wants to find a new challenge, rather than staying at the Red Devils.

However, the experienced attacker could have handed Liverpool an upper hand after it emerged that United “might have pushed harder” to sign Darwin Nunez if they had known Ronaldo wanted to leave. Journalist Sam Pilger suggested that the timing of Ronaldo’s statement is “terrible” and that he should have told the club two months ago that he wanted to depart United in the transfer window.

United were heavily linked with Nunez before Liverpool managed to secure the services of the talented 22-year-old front man for a fee in the region of £65m plus add-ons. The former Benfica star scored 34 times in 41 matches across all competitions last season including a goal in both legs of their Champions League quarter-final defeat against Liverpool, and was on the radar of some of Europe’s best teams.

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Despite reported transfer interest from the Red Devils, Nunez decided to join Liverpool and will be hoping to help them to more success after they won the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup last term. It could have been totally different if Ronaldo told United sooner that he wanted to leave, as they could have pushed harder to try and persuade him to join them instead of their arch rivals.

With Edinson Cavani also leaving after his contract expired last month, United could be left without a senior recognised striker in their squad for the start of the season. Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford have both played through the middle in the past but are now predominately wingers with Ronaldo and Cavani often being the central figure up front under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick last term.

Ronaldo’s proposed departure might leave United in a mess and a dire state with just over a month to go until their Premier League opener against Brighton & Hove Albion at Old Trafford on August 7. Ten Hag has been looking at signing a centre forward this summer but it could have pushed further down the pecking order due to Ronaldo’s presence, while Rashford and Martial also have ability to play in that position.

Erling Haaland, at one point, was also tipped to join the Red Devils but he has since made the £51m switch to Manchester City, with Gabriel Jesus expected to sign for Arsenal. This could see United fall further behind in the race for the Champions League as Tottenham Hotspur have strengthened big with the signing of Richarlison, while Chelsea are set for a busy end to the window.

Now, the United hierarchy must look at alternative options, especially as they are set to compete in the Europa League and have a tight Thursday-Sunday turnaround every other week. This is not counting the potential Carabao Cup matches and midweek Premier League games they will have to play before the Qatar World Cup starts midway through the campaign.

Alexander Isak has been previously linked with a move to United and the club could explore the possibility of signing the Swedish international. Meanwhile, Robert Lewandowski is someone the Red Devils have expressed an interest in before with his Bayern Munich contract up in 2023.

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