The Premier League Player of the Year nominees are out and the shocking absentee on that list has to be Manchester United’s talisman Cristiano Ronaldo. The Portuguese star failed to make it to the list of nominations to win the prestigious award. It was something that his former teammate and Manchester United club legend Rio Ferdinand could not accept.
Ronaldo scored 18 league goals since joining the club only behind Mohamed Salah and Hueng-min Son who have scored more than 20 goals each. But unfortunately, it was not enough according to the Premier League jury as they skipped him out of the list.
Rio Ferdinand who has shared the dressing room at Old Trafford alongside Ronaldo for six years under the stewardship of Alex Ferguson highlighted how the Portuguese superstar did not deserve to be snubbed from the nomination list. He pointed out how Ronaldo deserved it more than Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka, who was among the top eight nominees.
Speaking on his YouTube show VIBE, the 43-year-old said, “Saka’s in the Player of the Year nominees? I wouldn’t have had Saka in there yet, as well as he has done. I wouldn’t have had him in there ahead of Ronaldo, not this season. Who’s voted that? Ronaldo should be in ahead of three of four of those guys. He probably doesn’t win i,t but in terms of nominees, it’s just laughable.”
Both Mohamed Salah and Son are prime contenders to win the award along with Kevin de Bruyne, West Ham’s breakthrough star Jared Bowen, Trent Alexander Arnold, Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse and Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka also made it to the list.
A lot of people felt that Ronaldo had a strong case despite his team’s slump this season. Ferdinand believes that the Portugal international will take it as disrespect as he finds no sense in ignoring United’s talisman.
Ferdinand added, “He (Ronaldo) will take it as a disrespect, but these are the things that fuel him; he will be thinking, ‘How dare you?’ And it’s based on stats, he’s like, ‘I have banged in more goals than most of them on that list other than (Mohamed) Salah, so what are you talking about?”
The trophies are usually handed out in May or early June. Manchester City’s star defender Ruben Dias won last year for his sensational performances.
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