Cristiano Ronaldo has been backed for a career in management after ending his international career, with a future return to Manchester United also tipped. The 41-year-old retired from Portugal duty on Thursday after scoring a record 146 goals in 234 caps, though he will continue at club level and has the milestone of 1,000 career goals in sight.
Former United coach backs Ronaldo for management
Mick Clegg, who spent 11 years as strength and conditioning coach at United and worked closely with Ronaldo during his first spell at Old Trafford, believes the forward will want to try management. Ronaldo first walked into the gym as an 18-year-old and told Clegg he planned to become the best player in the world.
"I think he'd want to have a go as a manager," said Clegg. "I tell you what, he's watched a lot of managers, hasn't he? And he's seen a lot of problems with them. He knows the good ones and he knows the bad ones."
"I think he'd be special as a manager, because he's open-minded, he listens to people. He knows himself, but he also knows what goes on around him."
Planned exit and possible United return
Clegg is convinced Ronaldo is already planning a post-playing career in football and, if management does not work out, believes he could turn to ownership. Either way, Clegg can see a return to United on the cards.
"I think he'd love to be Man United manager or owner," he said. "That's the thing about him: he's always planning... He's a planner. He's not somebody who just waits for things to happen."
Clegg noted that Ronaldo had planned his move to Real Madrid despite expectations he would stay at United forever. "He was there as an apprentice; that's how he saw it," Clegg said, adding that Ronaldo "did love United" and that leaving left a lasting impact because "he knew the people there and he loved the place."
Retirement amid Portugal fall-out
Ronaldo's decision to quit the Portugal team follows a dispute with new boss Jorge Jesus during the last international camp, when the five-time Ballon d'Or winner walked out of the squad.
Clegg rejected suggestions that Ronaldo's decisions are driven by ego or that he struggles to accept no longer being the main man for his country. "I don't think he's that egocentric to think that he's the best all the time," he said. "He will know whether he's the best or not based on really good information about himself and about the other players around him."
Clegg, who now runs his own gym in Ashton-under-Lyne and works as an expert for performance specialists PEAK4, said Ronaldo would have been "cringing" at the headlines and the fallout with Jesus. He recalled a story from Ronaldo's first days in the Carrington gym, when the young forward said of Ryan Giggs: "I know that Ryan Giggs is the person in the gym the most... I'm going to be better than him."
"So he'd already decided, 'I'm going to use Ryan Giggs as the model that I have to get level with and then obviously become better than'," Clegg said. "And at the end of the day, he's lasted longer, a little bit longer than Ryan."
