Erik ten Hag says he left Cristiano Ronaldo out against Man City 'out of respect'

dailystar.co.uk:

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has said he left Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench in their 6-3 defeat against Manchester City "out of respect".Having been named as a substitute for the Manchester Derby, Ronaldo wasn't brought on despite the Red Devils being utterly dominated by their neighbours.

Ten Hag favoured Anthony Martial as a pair of fresh legs up top.That decision left Ronaldo visibly frustrated and it was questioned by reporters in the post-match press conference. "I wouldn't bring him in because out of respect for Cristiano, for his big career," Ten Hag replied.READ MORE: Man Utd fans convinced Casemiro was signed 'to partner Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench'He then added: "And the other thing was the advantage I could bring Anthony Martial, he needs the minutes but I don't want to point it out like that."Ronaldo hasn't started a Premier League game since United's 4-0 loss to Brentford in August, featuring primarily in the Europa League.Martial came on with the score at 4-1 and did score twice, heading home from close range and firing home a penalty in the final 10 minutes.

But it remained a horrible day for all those associated with the red side of Manchester.Did Ten Hag make the right call? Let us know in the comments section.Trying to explain the result, Ten Hag continued: “I've seen some highlights, it was obvious we are defending not front foot.

We let them play, in possession we were not brave enough, we made tactical mistakes and then you get hammered. "In the last five games we brought that attitude on the pitch, a strong belief, convincement, we brought opponents problems.