Source: Eurosport
Fergie's advice heeded by Ronaldo
Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo has vowed to take on board criticism from manager Sir Alex Ferguson about his lack of teamwork.While United have reacted with the usual disdain to comments from former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon that Ronaldo will leave for the Bernabeu this summer, Ronaldo was basking in the glory of the wonder goal that beat FC Porto on Wednesday night.The effort came on the back of a rare rebuke from his manager, who felt the Ballon D'Or winner did not put himself out for his team-mates enough in the first leg at Old Trafford a week ago.It was one of the reasons Ronaldo was asked to play a more central role at the Estadio do Dragao, leaving Wayne Rooney and Ryan Giggs to do the hard yards down the flanks.Ronaldo is not entirely convinced Ferguson's assessment was accurate. But he does acknowledge the importance of his boss' opinion.And he intends to act on it."It is not a problem," he said."I always respect the manager and coaches because I want to learn."If he says that, it is because he thinks it is true."But I think I have been playing well and I have scored a few important goals."The close bond between Ferguson and Ronaldo is one of the reasons United feel so bullish about the player's Old Trafford future.It seemed there was no chance of the 24-year-old remaining at Old Trafford last summer, only for him to renew his pledge to the club following a face-to-face meeting with the Scot, who flew out to meet the player immediately before United's summer tour.But Ferguson always knew the rumours would resurface, famously declaring 'he would not sell them a virus' when it emerged just before Christmas that the Real hierarchy felt Ronaldo's transfer was in the bag.The removal of Calderon has seen a lessening in the sheer number of Ronaldo stories seeping out of Madrid.However, his word still carries an air of authority and his latest statement is being viewed in Spain as gospel.He told RMC: "Anyone who becomes the next president will have at his disposal one of the best players in the world, who is already formally committed to Real Madrid."I cannot give any names, but all I can say is that thanks to the difficult and laborious work that I did last year, he is already formally a Madrid player, subject obviously to him being able to sign the relevant contract."Having last week revealed debts in excess of £650million, some will claim United's owners have a vested interest in selling if the price reaches £75million.However, only last Friday Ferguson defended the Glazer family, saying they had never been anything other than unstinting in their backing.The loss of Ronaldo could hardly be viewed in a positive light. And the reaction from inside United circles at Calderon's comments is akin to 'we have heard it all before'.Nevertheless, just as with similar stories that appeared within hours of United's Champions League Final win over Chelsea in Moscow last year, they have taken some of the gloss off last night's win.Not for Ronaldo though, who was intending to watch his astounding matchwinner again on DVD when he returned to the team hotel."It was a fantastic strike," he said. "Very hard and fast. I am very happy with it."The goal was enough to earn the Red Devils a Champions League semi-final showdown with old rivals Arsenal.Before that United must tackle Everton in the last four of the FA Cup before tackling Portsmouth and Tottenham in a Premier League title race they are still leading after winning their last two games.And Ronaldo is convinced the Old Trafford outfit can repeat last season's[LNB]
