Ralf Rangnick: It was Cristiano Ronaldo’s best performance since I arrived at Manchester United
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Updated 12/03/2022 at 23:04 GMT
Manchester United's interim manager Ralf Rangnick was full of praise for his striker Cristiano Ronaldo after the Portuguese striker hit a match-winning hat-trick during Saturday night's 3-2 victory over Tottenham in the Premier League. The win takes United back up into fourth as they chase a Champions League spot.
Rangnick: 'I need to send him to Portugal more' as Ronaldo’s hat-trick sends Man Utd fourth
Manchester United boss Ralf Rangnick praised match-winner Cristiano Ronaldo for a hat-trick performance that secured a 3-2 win over Tottenham.
The win lifts the interim appointee’s side into fourth place, though Arsenal could overtake them if they win their games in hand.
Ronaldo and Rangnick have reportedly not seen eye-to-eye since the German’s arrival, with the Portuguese striker no longer a certain starter.
However his three goals impressed Rangnick, and speaking after the game he was effusive in his praise.
"We showed the kind of reaction we were due to show after the bad second half at the Etihad. The team deserved to win, coming back after two equalising goals in that style was great,” he said.
Of Ronaldo, he claimed: "Today it was his best performance, at least since I arrived. He was good in training on Thursday and that is why I decided to start him. Fantastic performance by him but also by the rest of the team.
"He can do it [get 70,000 people off their feet], but again he can also do it only with the team. A fantastic performance. It was not just the three goals today it was also he was part of the team when they were in possession of the ball.
"It was probably our best performance bearing in mind the quality of the opponents. It was necessary, we had to win the game and it will give us a boost for our next game.
“He was part of the whole team when we had to defend, because we had to defend a lot. It was a top performance by him, but also by the rest of the team.
“I didn’t expect him to score three goals, but I expected him to score. That’s why I decided to play him. His training session was so good on Thursday that I decided to start him and not bring him from the bench. I spoke to him before training on Friday and he said his hip flexor was good enough to play.”
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