Cristiano Ronaldo’s second-half sulk has been defended by Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
Ronaldo, who scored the opener in United’s 2-0 victory over Manchester City, threw a strop 15 minutes after half time when Ferguson decided the rest his prized asset.
Snatching his training top as he stomped towards the bench, Ronaldo could clearly be seen shaking his head and uttering the words “it’s a joke” as he came to terms with the manager’s decision.
Ferguson, so famed for his ‘hair-dryer’ treatment, went easy on his star man after the match though, merely brushing Ronaldo’s actions aside as a desire to play.
“He wanted to stay on, that’s the simple reason,” Ferguson told the official United website.
“He’s in great form, but I have got to look at the bigger picture. He had an incredible performance at Arsenal in midweek, he ran his socks off. We have to think about how we get through our games and keeping him fresh.
“It’s great when players want to play. Take Jonny Evans, who was taken ill this morning. We put him on medication but he still said he wanted to play.
“He was feeling his hamstring at half time but again he wanted to play on. That’s the guts you want. I brought him off because I can’t take chances at this stage of the season.”