A limp 1-zero domestic defeat to Atletico Madrid on Tuesday noticed United bow out of the Champions League at the last 16 and the final chance of silverware from a depressing season slip away.
The despondent reaction to the whole-time whistle as Atletico boss Diego Simeone sprinted down the Old Trafford touchline in birthday party became in stark assessment to the jubilation that greeted Cristiano Ronaldo's homecoming for a 4-1 win over Newcastle in September.
Ronaldo's go back to the club wherein he first made his name as a worldwide movie star become purported to be the distinction maker inside the bid to mission once more for main trophies.
After finishing 2d to Manchester City inside the Premier League final season, Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane had already been signed for in excess of £a hundred million by the point Ronaldo snubbed the advances of City inside the very last days of August.
Rather than a go back of the honor days Ronaldo skilled under Alex Ferguson prior to his then international record pass to Real Madrid in 2009, he has succumbed to the slide United had been on ever when you consider that Ferguson departed as supervisor in 2013.
Interim boss Ralf Rangnick is United's 5th supervisor for the reason that mythical Scot stepped apart with the membership that used to boast approximately being the nice in the world, now being left behind by local competitors Manchester City and Liverpool.
Since Ferguson led United to a 3rd Champions League very last in four years in 2011, they've spent £1.2 billion on players for a return of triumphing just knockout ties in European membership soccer's pinnacle opposition.
For the fifth consecutive 12 months, United's European season changed into ended with the aid of Spanish opposition.
But this version of Atletico are a much cry from the sides that reached finals in three years among 2014 and 2016 only to be foiled by means of Ronaldo's Real Madrid.
Just like United in the Premier League, Simeone's guys face a warfare inside the very last months of the La Liga season simply to qualify for subsequent season's Champions League.
