Cristiano Ronaldo. /
Premier
Brutal display by the Portuguese, who sealed his second treble at Manchester United and gave him the win (3-2) in a key date in the battle for the Champions zone
Just three days before the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 that Manchester United will play on Tuesday against Atlético at Old Trafford after the Wanda Metropolitano 1-1, Cristiano Ronaldo sharpened his claws and sealed the triumph of the ‘devils Reds’ against Tottenham with a hat-trick worthy of his best times.
Ralf Rangnick’s team is not going through a great moment, with more egos than the whole, but the Portuguese star is still lethal and breaking records. He played better at Old Trafford and dominated Tottenham more, but he was always in tow and lost 3-2 because, quite simply, he had Cristiano in front of him, a nightmare for Harry Maguire and much more decisive than Harry Kane, Spurs’ striker.
The former Madridista, who has Atlético among his favorite victims both at the white club and when he was at Juventus, exhibited the most varied of his goalscoring repertoire. He scored the first from outside the area, the second finishing opportunistically and the third, rising and with a wonderful header, coming out of a corner. Brutal, immense the exhibition of CR7.
Sealing the 3-2, in the end the final result, his coach changed him for the Swedish Victor Lindelöf so that he would receive the ovation of a fan delivered to the Portuguese and, above all, reserve him for the duel against Atlético. Once again, Ronaldo strikes fear into the colchoneros’ bodies, against whom he has scored no less than 25 goals in 35 games and whom he won in two Champions League finals with Real Madrid.
It is Cristiano’s second hat-trick with Manchester United in the Premier League, after the one achieved in 2008 against Newcastle, and the first in this second spell at the Old Trafford club. According to Opta data, at 37 years and 35 days he becomes the second oldest player to achieve a hat-trick in the Premier League, only behind Teddy Sheringham, who did it in 2003 against Bolton at 37 years and 146 days.
Response to criticism
Once again, Cristiano overcame criticism for a gray season, speculation about an uncertain future, physical discomfort and differences with his coach. And he threw his team on his back at a peak moment, just when a key Champions League event is coming up and when United were playing against a direct rival for fourth place that gives access to the top continental competition, a place of honor for the which also competes with Arsenal.
Author of 807 goals in his career, Cristiano already has 59 hat-tricks in official matches, a stratospheric record. Of them, 44 were with Real Madrid, 10 with the Portugal national team, three with Juventus, one of them that served to knock out Atlético and come back two goals in the round of 16 of the Champions League 18-19 , and two with Manchester United.
