Christian Eriksen is sad to see Cristiano Ronaldo leave Manchester United but insists supporters will soon forget what it was like having the forward at the club.
Ronaldo's second spell at Old Trafford came to an end last month when his contract was mutually terminated after criticising the club and manager Erik ten Hag in an interview.
United have not looked back since, having defeated Burnley 2-0 in the last 16 of the EFL Cup and Nottingham Forest 3-0 in the Premier League on their return to action.
While Eriksen is grateful to have played alongside Ronaldo this season, the Denmark international is glad he and his team-mates can now focus solely on football matters.
"First of all we are sad Ronaldo is not part of it. His legacy and his name at any club is special, for me to be fortunate to play with him in my career was very nice," Eriksen said.
"The football goes on. You feel that the next game after, people will forget what it was like before and now our focus is really like he is not here.
"The atmosphere is good. We have a lot of people coming back from the World Cup, the last guys are coming back and everyone is coming together."
Ronaldo, who started just 10 of United's 21 matches prior to his departure, is reportedly close to joining Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr on a huge-money contract.
United are in the market for a replacement in the January window, despite the form of Marcus Rashford, who has scored 10 goals in 21 matches this season.
That is double the number of any other United player, with Anthony Martial next best with five goals, and Eriksen is hopeful the England international can continue his hot streak.
"He played very well [against Forest]. Luckily I haven't been on the pitch where he has played a bad game yet," Eriksen said.
"I let him continue that. He is looking sharp and confident and you can feel that when he is going forward.
"You feel that in the stadium and you feel that with him and it is a nice thing and I hope he keeps it going. You can see that he came back [from the World Cup] pretty confident.
"I didn't see as much of his [England] games of course. You guys will have seen more, but he came back in good shape and luckily he has taken that into United."
Following Tuesday's comfortable win over Forest, United have now kept four successive clean sheets at Old Trafford in the league for the first time since June 2020.
United are a point off the top four with a game in hand, a far cry from the opening fortnight of the season when losing to Brighton and Hove Albion and then Brentford in humbling fashion.
"We are in a good place," Eriksen added. "The start of the season is very different compared to now. The football is different now to the beginning.
"It was a bit hit-and-miss in some games but I think after that we picked up, we have been building since.
"You feel that in the group, you feel that the system is working which is something you have to believe in and I think we are doing that."
New York Red Bulls v Vancouver Whitecaps: Facing Eastern Conference teams ‘like going to the casino’
Vanni Sartini is anticipating a tight encounter when his Vancouver Whitecaps team face the New York Red Bulls.
Vancouver have enjoyed a fine start to the MLS season and sit second in the Western Conference.
The Red Bulls, meanwhile, are in second place in the East.
This game will be the first meeting of the teams since 2019, and Sartini joked that facing sides from a different Conference is akin to a trip to a casino.
He said: “It’s going to be hard. It’s like going to the casino when you play the Eastern teams – you never know!
“Maybe you’ll face the team in last, the team that’s in first place. Unfortunately this season we’re going to play the Red Bulls, who are doing very well.”
Explaining what he expects to see from the Red Bulls, Sartini added: “They’re a team with a very distinct and particular style of play, like we have, to be honest.
“We need to be very intense, because that’s what they are, they are very intense in pressing, counter-pressing, counter-attacks and we need to be very well organised. It’s a game that will be decided in the second half, it’s going to be tight until the end – that’s what I feel.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
New York Red Bulls – Lewis Morgan
Morgan is enjoying a fine campaign, and he leads the Red Bulls’ scoring efforts with six goals in MLS.
Vancouver Whitecaps – Brian White
White joined the ‘Caps from the Red Bulls in 2021. He has scored four goals in MLS this season, making him Vancouver’s leading scorer.
MATCH PREDICTION: NEW YORK RED BULLS WIN
Ryan Gauld and White have each contributed to at least one goal in their last five MLS appearances, equalling the longest streak in Whitecaps’ history. Prior to them, only three players in team history had recorded a goal contribution in five straight matches.
With 16 points through eight matches, the Whitecaps are off to the joint-best eight-match start in club history (also 2015). Vancouver have never had more than 17 points (2012) after nine matches of a season before.
The Red Bulls have lost only one of their first nine matches this season (W4 D4), the second time in club history they have had fewer than two losses at this stage of a season, along with their Supporters’ Shield winning 2015 campaign (also W4 D4 L1).
Six of the 12 all-time meetings between the Red Bulls and Whitecaps have been drawn (Whitecaps W4, Red Bulls W2), but New York are anticipated to win this one.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
NYRB – 48.9%
Vancouver Whitecaps – 23.3%
Draw – 27.8%
Brazil legend Marta to retire from international football
Brazil star Marta has announced she will retire from international football at the end of 2024.
The 38-year-old is the all-time highest scorer for Brazil, netting 116 goals in 175 matches for the national team.
She is also the top-scorer in the Women’s World Cup with 17 goals, finishing as a runner-up in 2007 when Brazil lost in the final to Germany.
The forward has won three Copa America Femenina titles and was part of the Brazil team that won silver medals at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics.
Marta could make her sixth appearance for Brazil at this year's Games if she is selected in the squad at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
"If I go to the Olympics, I will enjoy every moment, because, regardless of whether I go to the Olympics or not, this is my last year with the national team," Marta told CNN in an interview on Thursday.
"There will be no more Marta from 2025 in the national team as an athlete.
"I am very calm about this because I see with great optimism this development that we are having in relation to young athletes."
Al Hilal 3-1 Al Fateh: Neves on target as Saudi giants close in on title
Al Hilal moved 12 points clear of Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr at the top of the Saudi Pro League as Ruben Neves scored in a 3-1 win over Al Fateh on Friday.
Former Wolves star Neves slotted in from the penalty spot in the 74th minute, as Al Hilal completed a rapid comeback.
Having fallen behind to Lucas Zelarayan's 57th-minute opener, Al Hilal responded swiftly through Micheal before Salem Al Najdi fouled Mohammed Al Qahtani in the penalty area.
Ex-Barcelona winger Cristian Trello and Al Fateh coach Slaven Bilic were booked for their complaints, with Neves making no mistake, paving the way for Ali Al Bulayhi to seal victory in the 15th minute of an extended period of stoppage time.
Data Debrief
Al Hilal have now won 21 games on the spin in the league. They have scored 86 goals across their 28 matches this season, winning 26 in total.
They had 19 shots on Friday, accumulating 2.34 xG to Al Fateh's 0.25, with pass-master Neves creating three chances to go along with his goal.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
