Ronaldo said he felt ‘betrayed’ by Manchester United in a sensational interview with Piers Morgan and also took aim at Old Trafford heroes Wayne Rooney and Gary Neville.
The Portugal striker said he does not understand why Rooney and Neville persistently criticise him, even though Neville appeared to be on Ronaldo’s side until he refused to come on in a Premier League match last month.
Before the tell-all interview with Morgan, Ronaldo had blanked Neville and Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher as they performed punditry duties on the side of the pitch at Old Trafford.
Wright believes Ronaldo’s behaviour has been ‘petty’ and says the five-time Ballon d’Or winner may need therapy to deal with criticism.
‘It’s quite sad to see when you consider what Cristiano Ronaldo has done and what he’s achieved in his career,’ the former Arsenal striker said on The Kelly and Wrighty Show.
‘For him not to be able to deal with his career coming to an end – it happens to all of us, it happened to me – you do feel a sense of “is that it?”
‘He’s not used to hearing negativity but now it is coming to him. It must be difficult for him and something he may need to seek counselling for.’
On Ronaldo’s decision to blank Neville and Carragher, Wright added: ‘I find that petty. I was quite uncomfortable watching what he did to Jamie Carragher.
‘When I watch Carragher’s summary of the situation, it’s not a million miles off. All of the stuff he said – about Ronaldo’s age and profile – has come to be.
‘No pundit is going out there just to dig players out, it’s not personal.
‘It’s petty because Gary Neville has always stuck by Ronaldo. The one time Gary criticised the way Ronaldo acted when he refused to come on – which was terrible – and he blanks him for it.’
With Ronaldo hitting out at Manchester United and the club’s owners, Wright is adamant the striker is ‘trying to engineer a move away’ from Old Trafford.
The 37-year-old, who scored 24 goals in 38 games last season, tried to leave United over the summer after they failed to qualify for the Champions League.
‘It seems like he’s trying to engineer a move away. I can’t see why else he would be talking like this,’ Wright said.
‘It wouldn’t make sense for him otherwise. I think one of the things that stuck out for me is him saying that nothing’s changed since his first spell there. That’s really damning.
‘But for him to talk about not respecting the manager, I found that really difficult, especially after he left a game early. It smacks of someone who wants to do this final thing and then leave.’
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