Ten Hag tells ESPN Ronaldo could not deliver for seven or eight years

Renewed criticism on ESPN

On Sunday, 1 November, Erik ten Hag returned to his fallout with Cristiano Ronaldo during an appearance on ESPN's Goedemorgen Eredivisie programme. The former Manchester United manager, who now works as technical director at FC Twente, said the Portuguese forward had been unable to deliver for seven or eight years. He placed the decline after Juventus and said Real Madrid had known when to let players go. The remarks came after an in-depth interview with The Athletic in October, in which he had already accused Ronaldo of unprofessionalism.

“Every top team must embrace the top player, but the top player must also make way for the team. That was simply the problem with Ronaldo.”

Ronaldo, who is 41, plays in Saudi Arabia. Asked whether the forward was not known for his fitness, Ten Hag said that was the image, but that ultimately he could no longer keep it up every day. He said that without fitness there was no chance in the Premier League.

The Old Trafford fallout

Ten Hag took charge of United in April 2022. After dropping Ronaldo to the bench following a slow start to the season, he refused to come on as a substitute and stormed down the tunnel during a victory against Tottenham. The club banned him from the first-team squad for one match. He returned to the squad but played no part in the next two matches before the Premier League broke for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

In November 2022 Ronaldo spoke at length about the breakdown in an interview with Piers Morgan. The interview accelerated his exit, and United subsequently terminated his contract. Ten Hag said he had explained to the forward before the season how the team would play, what his role would be and what he could expect. He stressed that ultimately the player also had to deliver himself. Ten Hag's own spell at Old Trafford ran between 2022 and 2024.

Feyenoord approach and Jong Ajax

Ten Hag also revealed that Feyenoord tried to appoint him as coach in the winter of 2025, after Brian Priske was removed following a disappointing spell. The then managing director Dennis te Kloese phoned him, and the two spoke on the telephone for a long time. Ten Hag said he felt an immediate click with Te Kloese, but he declined. He was out of work at the time, and he said his past at Ajax played a significant role, as did his strong bond with Alex Kroes, then Ajax's director. Feyenoord then chose Robin van Persie as coach.

Asked whether he could return to Ajax for a second spell, Ten Hag did not rule it out. He said he is now technical director at FC Twente and enjoys that role very much. He also voiced concern about Jong Ajax, which sits 16th in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie with 12 points from 12 matches this season after finishing bottom last year. Ten Hag said the future would have to show whether the short-term focus of technical director Jordi Cruijff's policy was right. He added that it was worrying Jong Ajax was not competing at the top, and that the club must rely on developing young players.