Erik ten Hag is confident Cristiano Ronaldo will hit his stride after scoring his 700th club goal – and his first of the 2022-23 Premier League season – in Sunday's 2-1 win at Everton.
Ronaldo had endured a frustrating campaign prior to his outing at Goodison Park, a ground on which he had never previously scored a Premier League goal, but he proved decisive after entering the fray in the first half.
Antony cancelled out Alex Iwobi's opener before Ronaldo replaced the injured Anthony Martial, and the 37-year-old quickly made his mark by firing a left-footed finish beyond Jordan Pickford.
That strike was Ronaldo's 700th in club football and his 144th across two spells at Old Trafford, and ensured United bounced back from last week's derby thrashing by Manchester City.
Speaking at a post-match news conference, Ten Hag congratulated Ronaldo on his landmark and backed him to hit a rich vein of form in the coming weeks.
"That is really impressive, when you score 700 goals," Ten Hag said. "It's a huge performance, I'm really happy for him.
"I congratulate him on that performance and I'm also happy it's his first goal this season in the Premier League. He had to wait for it and I'm sure there will be more goals.
"I think every player needs it, even when you are the best in the world, you need it, you need the goals.
"I worked with many goalscorers, especially them, they need goals in every season to have that feeling, to have the confirmation of their intuition.
"Once they have some goals, they come in the flow and games go easier. That will happen with him as well."
United had lost eight of their previous 10 away league games ahead of their trip to Merseyside – including last Sunday's dismal loss at the Etihad Stadium, and Ten Hag was pleased with the improvements on display.
"First of all, criticism is normal when you have a defeat, especially in a big game, in a derby, so we have to deal with that and you learn lessons," Ten Hag added.
"In this moment, we collect the points, it's not looking at the table, we have to win every game – it's our aim.
"We have to improve every game, we have to improve the process, we have to prepare every game 100 per cent and we demand from the players that in every game they give their best.
"You see in this game, the spirit is really good in the squad – it's not only the 11 players.
"Again, a sub coming on and scoring a goal, you see Victor Lindelof, Scott McTominay and Raphael Varane coming in, so we use more than 11 players and I am happy with that process."
United goalkeeper David De Gea also praised Ronaldo following the win, hailing him for maintaining a professional attitude despite starting just one league game under Ten Hag.
"He's never been in this situation before, but the way he works and trains, it's just unbelievable," De Gea told BT Sport. "It's not easy times for him, but he showed he's a great player."
With De Gea's United contract expiring at the end of the season – although the club has an option for an extra year – the Spaniard also revealed he would like to commit his future to the club.
"I'm just very focused on the games, helping the team as much as I can," he added. "Of course, I would like to be here for more years, so let's see what happens in the future. I'm really, really happy here."
Yamal ruled out of Serbia clash due to muscle injury
Lamine Yamal will miss Spain's Nations League clash against Serbia after sustaining a muscle injury during their 1-0 win over Denmark on Saturday.
Yamal was replaced by Sergio Gomez in the 93rd minute of their encounter at the Estadio Nueva Condomina and was seen limping after the game.
He had endured multiple tackles during the contest, raising concerns over his fitness. Despite the precautionary exit, the Spanish medical team found no significant injury.
The 17-year-old has since been replaced in Luis de la Fuente's squad by Atletico Madrid's Rodrigo Riquelme for the match against Serbia in Cordoba.
"The tests did not reveal any structural injury, and the medical staff of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) confirmed it is a case of muscle strain," the Spain national team said in a statement on Sunday.
"Prioritising the player's health and to avoid any risk of injury ahead of the upcoming match against Serbia, it has been decided to withdraw him from the squad."
Yamal has continued his impressive form from Euro 2024 into the current LaLiga season for Barcelona, scoring five goals in 11 appearances in all competitions.
Only Sevilla's Chidera Ejuke (28) has completed more dribbles in the league than Yamal (27), with his 18 chances created for Hansi Flick's side, a total only bettered by Raphinha (32) in Barcelona's ranks.
Yamal announced himself on the international stage during Spain's European Championship success earlier this year, notching four assists and one goal at the tournament.
While only in the infancy of his promising career, Spain head coach De la Fuente believes the treatment Yamal is currently experiencing is something he must get used to.
"The referee has to protect these talented players, but Lamine has to get used to it. I would love it to be a bed of roses, Flower Power, but this sport is like that," De la Fuente said.
"Lamine displayed an exceptional attitude and generated a lot for us from the right flank. He has a special talent.
"I had a teammate who used to say: 'What do you want, kisses (from the opponents)?' Teams will use the weapons they can within the rules."
Liverpool 1-2 Manchester City: Shaw grabs late winner at Anfield
Khadija Shaw's second-half double propelled Manchester City to a 2-1 win over Liverpool as they capped off a fine week in style.
Olivia Smith's stinging 41st-minute strike put the Reds ahead at Anfield on Sunday, but last season's leading Women's Super League scorer Shaw inspired the City comeback.
The Jamaican headed in from Lauren Hemp's pinpoint delivery in the 58th minute, before taking centre stage late on.
In the second minute of stoppage time, Shaw shrugged off the challenge of Niamh Fahey and lashed home a venomous effort into the top-right corner to secure the points for Gareth Taylor's team.
The victory ends a fantastic week for City, who beat Barcelona in the Champions League on Wednesday and moved top of the WSL with 10 points from their four matches.
Data Debrief: Liverpool's Anfield hoodoo
City won the corresponding fixture 4-1 last season, but were pushed much closer this time around before eventually claiming their ninth win against the Reds in the space of 11 meetings in the WSL.
Liverpool might want to reconsider whether they play their biggest matches at Anfield, too, given they have now played four WSL matches there and lost every single one (three to Everton, one to Man City).
City are now unbeaten in their opening four WSL matches for the first time since 2019-20, and last year's runners-up look well set to challenge again this term.
'Cristiano is perfect' - Martinez plays down early Ronaldo substitution
Roberto Martinez took Cristiano Ronaldo off just after the hour mark against Poland but assured he was only managing the 39-year-old's minutes.
Ronaldo was on target for Portugal in their 3-1 win over Poland, doubling their tally after Bernardo Silva's opener.
Piotr Zielinski provided the Selecao with a late scare, but Jan Bednarek's own goal ensured Portugal kept their 100% record, and they are the only team to win all three games so far in League A.
The Portugal captain was replaced by Diogo Jota, who had a hand in their third goal, in the 63rd minute, having had three shots and accumulating 1.43 expected goals (xG).
And Martinez insisted Ronaldo would have a part to play against Scotland as he praised the team's resilience to get the win over the line.
"It's part of managing players when you have two games in 72 hours. Diogo Jota came on very well. Cristiano is perfect," Martinez said.
"The first half was very good. We controlled the game, created opportunities, had very good synchronisation as a team, defended Poland's strengths very well and scored great goals.
"I'm happy with the new players who came in, it seems they have several international caps.
"Conceding a goal was a difficult moment, and it was great to see the reaction and score another goal. Overall, a very good performance.
"The challenge is two away games. 72 hours, recovering well. The players showed all their commitment during training and work at the Football City."
Martinez was also impressed by debutant Renato Veiga, who started alongside Ruben Dias at centre-back.
The Chelsea defender made seven clearances, the most of any player on the team, and helped limit Robert Lewandowski to just two shots, neither of which were on target.
"He has a very special profile. In his first training session, he showed that he gained maturity during the September training camp," Martinez added.
"He is an aggressive player, with great communication skills, who can defend large spaces, play in the air, against a Poland side that is very strong in set pieces.
"It was a fantastic debut. With a striker like Lewandowski, I think it is a debut that shows Renato's potential and how he is working at the moment."
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