Ronaldo’s most recent goal came in Sunday’s dramatic 2-1 win over West Ham, which helped United bounce back from their shocking Champions League defeat by BSC Young Boys
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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer praises Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo has enjoyed a prolific start to his second stint with Manchester United, with the Portuguese superstar scoring four goals in his first three games for the club.
The 36-year-old returned to Old Trafford from Serie A club Juventus during the summer transfer window on a two-year deal worth €23m including add-ons, having last played for the Red Devils back in 2009.
Ronaldo’s most recent goal came in Sunday’s dramatic 2-1 win over West Ham, which helped United bounce back from their shocking Champions League defeat by BSC Young Boys on Tuesday – a game which he also scored in.
The five-time Ballon D’or winner has won over 30 major trophies during his career so far including five Champions League titles and four World Cups, making the value of his signing seem like the bargain of the century.
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But upon turning back the pages in the history book, it also raises further questions regarding the dubious nature of Alexis Sanchez’s time at Old Trafford – a player who cost the side £66m, according to the Daily Mail.
The Chilean striker arrived in Manchester back in 2018 after being signed from Arsenal and with a basic salary of £350,000 per week the deal made him the highest paid player in the Premier League.
Brought into the side by Red Devils boss Jose Mourinho, Sanchez had a strong record to his name with a stint at Barcelona before a three-and-a-half-year spell at the Emirates, where he scored 80 goals and contributed 45 assists in 166 appearances.
But his tenure at Old Trafford proved to be a total disaster as the Chilean only featured in 45 games during his two-and-a-half-year career at the club, scoring just five times. The striker once scored a hat-trick in 14 minutes against West Ham for Arsenal.
Now, statistics have been revealed as to just how spectacularly disastrous the signing of Sanchez was for Man Utd, who breathed a sigh of relief once the striker departed for Inter Milan in August of 2020.
Ronaldo has already matched the Chilean’s Premier League goal tally for the Red Devils with three goals in just two games, whereas Sanchez appeared for United in 32 fixtures in the English top-flight.
Why do you think Alexis Sanchez had such a disastrous career at Man Utd? Let us know in the comments section
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Indeed, Ronaldo’s heroics raise further scrutiny over Sanchez’s struggles, with the former Arsenal star costing United £13.2m per goal, £7.3m per assist and a further £1.5m for every time he pulled on a Man Utd shirt since 2018.
Sanchez’s departure from Old Trafford saved United up to £58m in wages and he was even gifted a £9m pay-off fee as part of his free transfer move to Inter Milan.
Since arriving in the Serie A, the forward has found more fortune and has featured for Inter Milan on 71 occasions – scoring 11 times and contributing 18 assists.
Meanwhile, Ronaldo looks set to continue to dominate the Premier League this season and despite his age the striker poses a real threat to any defensive outfit in the competition.
