Cristiano Ronaldo is to leave Manchester United with immediate effect, the club has announced.
In a statement, the club said: “Cristiano Ronaldo is to leave Manchester United by mutual agreement, with immediate effect.”
The decision comes days after Ronaldo launched a blistering attack on the club in an interview with Piers Morgan, accusing United of betraying him by forcing him out of the club.
Unitedthanked Ronaldo, 37, in its statement and said the club was focused on working together.
“The club thanks him for his immense contribution across two spells at Old Trafford, scoring 145 goals in 346 appearances, and wishes him and his family well for the future,” it said.
“Everyone at Manchester United remains focused on continuing the team’s progress under Erik ten Hag and working together to deliver success on the pitch.”
Ronaldo said: “Following conversations with Manchester United we have mutually agreed to end our contract early.
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“I love Manchester United and I love the fans, that will never ever change.
“However, it feels like the right time for me to seek a new challenge.
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“I wish the team every success for the remainder of the season and for the future.”
Image: Ronaldo said he felt ‘provoked’ by his coach Erik ten Hag
Ronaldo has been a regular on the bench this season, scoring three goals in 16 appearances.
In the interview with Morgan on TalkTV, Ronaldo also said he had “no respect” for boss Erik ten Hag, and alleged two senior figures at Old Trafford treated him with suspicion when he said his daughter Bella was sick with bronchitis, three months after her twin brother died.
Departure ‘inevitable’
Rob Harris, Sky’s sports correspondent, said his departure was “inevitable” after the interview.
“Once Cristiano Ronaldo gave that interview last week saying he felt betrayed by Manchester United, as well as criticising the club, the standards of coaching, and the methodology and the fabric of the club, it looked like his time at Manchester United was coming to an end,” Harris said.
“This is the end of his second period at the club. He’d barely been there a year or so. United thought he was heading to Manchester City when they signed him a year ago. They managed to convince him. Sir Alex Ferguson, the former manager, managed to convince him not to go to their arch-rivals, but it has been a souring of relations.”
He also pointed out that Ronaldo has not had “the same impact” as before.
Image: Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag and Ronaldo
“He had not been a significant part of this season. Only one goal was scored and he’d even left some games early – which led to him one point being banished from the team for a while.”
Ronaldo is now on international duty with Portugal in Qatar, focusing on the start of their World Cup campaign on Thursday against Ghana.
He will not be looking for a new club immediately, according to Harris.
Manchester United was understood to be “extremely disappointed” with Ronaldo’s interview with Morgan and initially said it would be “considering its response” to the interview.
Ronaldo claims he’s ‘bullet-proof’
The Portugal star had a defiant response to criticism of his comments after his arrival in Qatar, telling a news conference: “I am bullet-proof, I wear an iron suit.
“From your side, it is easy to look at how we can choose timings. Sometimes you write truths, sometimes you write lies. I don’t have to worry about what others think.”
He also insisted that the awkward handshake between him and his teammate Bruno Fernandes after the interview was actually a joke between the teammates.
Image: Ronaldo at Lisbon airport en route to Qatar. Pic: AP
‘Legendary status’
Former Manchester United player Rio Ferdinand weighed on Ronaldo’s departure, saying he believes his controversial exit from Old Trafford will not detract from his legacy at the club.
He believes the Portuguese star got the result he wanted from his interview with Piers Morgan, and still deserves to be remembered fondly by fans.
“I don’t think this affects or detracts from Cristiano Ronaldo’s legacy at the football club – what he’s achieved, his legendary status, I believe doesn’t change,” the sports pundit told his Youtube channel.
“The measure of what he was when he was in the red shirt, playing football, and the amount of successful moments and trophies that he brought to the club when he was here, becoming the best player in the world when he was at Manchester United – these things you cannot erase from history.”
Labour MP Dan Norris has been arrested on suspicion of rape and child sex offences.
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “Dan Norris MP was immediately suspended by the Labour Party upon being informed of his arrest.
“We cannot comment further while the police investigation is ongoing.”
Police said a man in his 60s had been arrested on Friday on suspicion of sexual offences against a girl, rape, child abduction and misconduct in a public office.
Sky News has contacted Mr Norris for comment.
Mr Norris, 65, defeated Jacob Rees-Mogg to win the new seat of North East Somerset and Hanham in last year’s general election.
He has also lost the party whip in the House of Commons and has stepped down from his role as chair of the League Against Cruel Sports.
Avon and Somerset Police said in a statement: “In December 2024, we received a referral from another police force relating to alleged non-recent child sex offences having been committed against a girl.
“Most of the offences are alleged to have occurred in the 2000s, but we’re also investigating an alleged offence of rape from the 2020s.
“An investigation, led by officers within Operation Bluestone, our dedicated rape and serious sexual assault investigation team, remains ongoing and at an early stage.
“The victim is being supported and given access to any specialist help or support she needs.
“A man, aged in his 60s, was arrested on Friday (April 4) on suspicion of sexual offences against a girl (under the Sexual Offences Act 1956), rape (under the Sexual Offences Act 2003), child abduction and misconduct in a public office. He’s been released on conditional bail for enquiries to continue.
“This is an active and sensitive investigation, so we’d respectfully ask people not to speculate on the circumstances so our enquiries can continue unhindered.”
Mr Norris first entered Parliament when Tony Blair came to power in 1997 and served as the Wansdyke MP until 2010.
He was an assistant whip under Mr Blair and served as a junior minister under Gordon Brown.
Mr Norris has also been West of England mayor since 2021 but is due to step down ahead of May’s local elections.
A spokesman for the League Against Cruel Sports, a UK-based animal welfare charity which campaigns to end sports such as fox hunting and game bird shooting, confirmed he had stepped down from his role.
“The charity cannot comment further while an investigation is ongoing,” a statement said.
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has said it will “pause” shipments to the US as the British car firm works to “address the new trading terms” of Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The US president has introduced a 25% levy on all foreign cars imported into the country, which came into force on Thursday.
JLR, one of the country’s biggest carmakers, exported about 38,000 cars to the US in the third quarter of 2024 – almost equal to the amount sold to the UK and the EU combined.
In a statement on Saturday, a spokesperson for the company behind the Jaguar, Land Rover and Range Rover brands said: “The USA is an important market for JLR’s luxury brands.
“As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are taking some short-term actions including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid- to longer-term plans.”
The company released a statement last week before Mr Trump announced a “baseline” 10% tariff on goods from around the world, which kicked in on Saturday morning, on what he called “liberation day”.
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JLR reassured customers its business was “resilient” and “accustomed to changing market conditions”.
“Our priorities now are delivering for our clients around the world and addressing these new US trading terms,” the firm said.
Trading across the world has been hit by Mr Trump’s tariff announcement at the White House on Wednesday.
All but one stock on the FTSE 100 fell on Friday – with Rolls-Royce, banks and miners among those to suffer the sharpest losses.
Cars are the top product exported from the UK to the US, with exports worth £8.3bn in the year to the end of September 2024, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.
For UK carmakers, the US is the second largest export market behind the European Union.
Industry groups have previously warned the tariffs will force firms to rethink where they trade, while a report by thinktank the Institute for Public Policy Research said more than 25,000 car manufacturing jobs in the UK could be at risk.
Two people have died following a fire at a caravan site near Skegness, Lincolnshire Police have said.
In a statement, officers said they were called at 3.53am on Saturday to a report of a blaze at Golden Beach Holiday Park in the village of Ingoldmells.
Fire and rescue crews attended the scene, and two people were found to have died.
They were reported to be a 10-year-old girl and a 48-year-old man.
The force said the victims’ next of kin have been informed and will be supported by specially trained officers.
Officers are trying to establish the exact cause of the blaze.
“We are at the very early stages of our investigation and as such we are keeping an open mind,” the force said.