Bruno Fernandes shared a very tense reunion with Manchester United team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo on Monday after the latter’s shocking interview in which he slammed the club and Erik ten Hag.
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The 37-year-old sat down for a 90-minute interview with Piers Morgan in which he accused United of ‘betrayal’ and said he would ‘never respect’ Ten Hag.
United released a statement on Monday saying they would ‘consider their response after the full facts have been established’, with only small bits from the sit-down having been released before it airs in full this week.
Nevertheless, Ronaldo’s comments are reported to have gone down like a lead balloon with both the club’s hierarchy and also his team-mates – many of whom have become tired of his sulking.
The Red devils are expected to fine Ronaldo two weeks’ wages – which amounts to around £1m – and are even considering tearing up his contract.
Now United supporters have been granted a first glimpse of how Ronaldo’s interview has gone down with his team-mates after Fernandes was reunited with him for the first time.
Ronaldo had already flown to Portugal and took part in training on Monday despite ‘illness’ having caused him to miss the Red Devils’ last two games, against Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup and Fulham in the league on Sunday.
Fernandes’ link-up with the Portugal squad was delayed due to his participation at Craven Cottage and things got awkward when he bumped into Ronaldo for the first time since his interview.
The midfielder initially seemed to ignore Ronaldo’s outstretched hand before later shaking it and appearing to make a comment that left the former Real Madrid star looking stony-faced, before the duo exchanged words and Fernandes walked away to meet other team-mates – doing so in a more cheery manner.
Within minutes, the footage of their tense meeting had been watched millions of times, with one United supporter tweeting: ‘The way Cristiano Ronaldo looked at Bruno Fernandes after shaking his hand… LOL!’
O ambiente está bom na seleção. #Qatar2022 #Portugal #Ronaldo #brunofernandes #ManchesterUnited pic.twitter.com/FX2jXtBaIK
— luigi damiao (@LuigiDamiao) November 14, 2022
‘Bruno doesn’t look happy with Ronaldo,’ tweeted another. ‘The body language shows the tension.’ Others suggested Ronaldo was oblivious to the uproar his interview had created and could not understand why Fernandes might be frosty towards him.
Portuguese journalist Pedro Sepulveda claims the frosty reunion between both players has been overblown and says there is no issue between them, with the duo focused on performing well for Portugal at the World Cup.
Ronaldo posted a message on social media in the day, writing on Instagram: ‘Total and absolute focus on national team work. A united group working towards one objective: realising the dream of all Portuguese people!’
