Rio Ferdinand Says Cristiano Ronaldo's Impact Is Unquestionable Amid Man Utd Dressing Room Claims

One of the finest Manchester United defenders, Rio Ferdinand, highly praised former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo despite accusations that the Portugal international is hampering Old Trafford's success.

In Man Utd's recent game against Tottenham, Ronaldo scored another historical hat-trick for the team. It marked his a return that placed his tally for the season up to 18 in all competitions. His hat-trick goal made him the FIFA all-time top goalscorer with a total of 807 career goals.

Interim manager Ralf Rangnick has made three changes to his starting XI for the Atletico Madrid showdown as Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Marcus Rashford make way for Bruno Fernandes, Scott McTominay and Anthony Elanga.

According to Ferdinand, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner Ronaldo was always going to begin against the Spanish champions. Despite CR7's advancing years, one thing still sets him apart from other Manchester United players. "His impact is unquestionable. 800 or so goals he's scored in his career, but his three goals against Spurs at the weekend just sum him up. An absolute rocket for his first goal. You can talk about his age, his sharpness, sometimes it's in his head where he beats players. Speed of thought. It's not about the body, it's about how you think and smell spaces you can get into ahead of others," Ferdinand told BT Sport.

Another expert, Paul Scholes added, "He has to play in this team. He's the only real outright goalscorer this team has got. [Edinson] Cavani, maybe, but he never seems to be fit enough. If Cristiano is fit, he has to play. Nine times out of 10, for what he's done the last however many years, he'll continue doing."

The 37-year-old striker has been continuously questioned on whether he would be fit to play in the field even after some years. However, Ronaldo seemed to set everything aside in order to focus on the team's progress in the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Rangnick is set to be replaced at Old Trafford this summer and a new manager is expected to arrive with new ideas, strategies and targets. It remains unknown who will be the next boss to help Man Utd with their endeavors.

Many changes are about to happen at Old Trafford, including Man Utd's new kit that is making fans go wild. The Red Devils supporters have been full of praise for the new leaked kit for the 2022/23 campaign. Pictures of the kit have been circulating online. The red shirt features a white collar with red and black triangles, displaying Man Utd's famous color scheme.

The club's leaked retro-style jersey is quite similar to the one they wore in 1994. The badge is placed on a red shield rather than directly onto the shirt. Man Utd fans were all excited and expressing positive feedback towards the upcoming kit.