Cristiano Ronaldo acknowledged "the heat of the moment" got the better of him during his early walkout from Manchester United's win over Tottenham, pledging to be "ready for everything" after being dropped by the Red Devils.

United produced one of their best performances under Erik ten Hag during Wednesday's 2-0 win over Spurs, but the victory was overshadowed by Ronaldo walking down the tunnel before the final whistle.

Ten Hag said after the game that he would "deal with" Ronaldo's behaviour on Thursday, and the Dutchman followed through on that vow by sanctioning the 37-year-old.

On Thursday, United announced Ronaldo will play no part in Saturday's Premier League trip to Chelsea, with media reports even suggesting he refused to come on as a substitute against Spurs.

Ronaldo responded to the incident on his official Instagram account, insisting his attitude has not changed.

"As I've always done throughout my career, I try to live and play respectfully towards my colleagues, my adversaries and my coaches," Ronaldo wrote. "That hasn't changed. I haven't changed. 

"I'm the same person and the same professional that I've been for the last 20 years playing elite football, and respect has always played a very important role in my decision-making process.

"I started very young, the older and most experienced players' examples were always very important to me. Therefore, later on, I've always tried to set the example myself for the youngsters that grew in all the teams that I've represented. 

"Unfortunately, that's not always possible and sometimes the heat of the moment gets the best of us.

"Right now, I just feel that I have to keep working hard in Carrington, support my team-mates and be ready for everything in any given game. 

"Giving in to the pressure is not an option. It never was. This is Manchester United and united we must stand. Soon we'll be together again."

Ronaldo has only started two of United's 10 Premier League games this season, scoring just one goal in the competition after slipping below Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial in the pecking order.

The Portugal captain reportedly asked to leave United following their failure to secure a top-four finish last season but saw several rumoured suitors – including Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich – rule out signing him. 

Wolves have confirmed Steve Davis will remain as caretaker head coach until 2023 as their search for a permanent boss goes on.

Davis assumed caretaker duties after Bruno Lage was sacked earlier this month with the club in the relegation zone, before former Sevilla head coach Julen Lopetegui reportedly rejected the job.

Since taking over as caretaker, Wolves have lost two of their three matches, though they did claim victory over fellow strugglers Nottingham Forest between those two defeats.

The announcement comes after earlier reports that Queens Park Rangers' Michael Beale had turned down Wolves' approach to take over at Molineux.

In a statement on the club's official website, chairman Jeff Shi: "In the short time Steve and his team have been in interim charge of the first-team, we have already seen improvements to the group.

"We have no plans to rush our search for a new permanent head coach and will not compromise in any way our approach to appointing the person we believe to be the perfect fit for our club, our squad and the role of head coach at Wolves."

Cristiano Ronaldo will be omitted from the Manchester United squad to face Chelsea on Saturday following his early walkout during Wednesday's win over Tottenham.

The veteran forward, an unused substitute, walked down the tunnel before the final whistle at Old Trafford as Erik ten Hag's side downed Spurs in a 2-0 win.

Ten Hag said after the game that he would "deal with" Ronaldo's behaviour on Thursday, and the Dutchman has followed through on that by sanctioning the 37-year-old.

The Portugal captain will play no part in his side's next fixture away to Graham Potter's Blues.

"Cristiano Ronaldo will not be part of the Manchester United squad for this Saturday's Premier League game against Chelsea," read an official club statement.

"The rest of the squad is fully focused on preparing for that fixture."

It is the latest indicator of Ronaldo's discontent at Old Trafford, with a much-trumpeted homecoming last season having turned sour following a disappointing 2021-22 club campaign.

Ronaldo was United's top scorer last term with 24 goals across all competitions, but the Red Devils could only finish sixth in the Premier League.

That led to speculation suggesting Ronaldo wanted to leave the club, a narrative that ultimately became a distracting sideshow through Ten Hag's first pre-season in charge.

Ronaldo did not join United on their pre-season tour of Australia and Thailand.

When he did eventually feature in a friendly against Rayo Vallecano at Old Trafford, Ronaldo found himself at the centre of controversy as he left the stadium early after being withdrawn at half-time.

Ten Hag defended Ronaldo on that occasion, saying it was "not right" for the striker to attract all the criticism when there were several players who left early.

However, Thursday's action shows Ten Hag is willing to come down hard on the Portuguese superstar, and the situation will further cloud Ronaldo's future at the club.

The arrival of Ten Hag has seen Ronaldo slip down the pecking order, with just two Premier League starts and one goal this season across eight top-flight appearances.

United travel to Stamford Bridge sitting just one point behind their hosts in fourth.

Cristiano Ronaldo will be omitted from the Manchester United squad to face Chelsea on Saturday following his early walkout during Wednesday's win over Tottenham.

Arsenal have been charged by the Football Association (FA) with failing to control their players during a controversial ending to their 1-0 win over Leeds United on Sunday.

Mikel Arteta's team moved four points clear of Manchester City at the Premier League summit as Bukayo Saka scored the only goal of the game at Elland Road, though they required two huge reprieves. 

Patrick Bamford drilled a penalty wide following a handball by William Saliba on the hour mark, before a VAR review overturned a stoppage-time red card for Gabriel Magalhaes – as well as another spot-kick for Leeds.

Arsenal's players reacted furiously to Chris Kavanagh's original decision to dismiss Gabriel for a perceived kick at Bamford, leading the FA to take action.

An FA statement released on Thursday read: "Arsenal FC have been charged with a breach of FA Rule E20.1 following their Premier League fixture against Leeds United FC on Sunday 16 October 2022. 

"It's alleged that the club failed to ensure that their players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion during the 92nd minute of the fixture.

"Arsenal FC have until Monday 24 October 2022 to provide a response."

Asked for his opinion on the incident after the win, Arteta said: "I have not seen it, but everyone is saying the decision was clear. 

"Thank God they made the system work, that delay was worth it, because without VAR, I don't know what would have happened!"

Arsenal goalkeeper Matt Turner says he feels no pressure to replicate Aaron Ramsdale as the USMNT shot stopper pushes to assert his place with the Gunners.

The 28-year-old joined Mikel Arteta's side from New England Revolution ahead of the 2022-23 campaign, but has so far been restricted in his minutes by the superb performances of his team-mate.

England hopeful Ramsdale has kept four clean sheets in the top-flight this term, a figure only exceeded by Three Lions team-mate Nick Pope with Newcastle United and Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson.

His form has helped Arsenal emerge as title contenders, leading the Premier League ahead of champions Manchester City - but Turner says he does not feel as if he must mimic the former Sheffield United man to improve.

"I definitely don't feel any pressure," he stated. "He's his own person. He approaches the game the way he does. Before games, I like to take time, just be mindful.

"Most of my banter comes with Aaron. It's just normal banter like you would have with anybody. It's America versus England, the Revolutionary War, stuff like that. That's more me joking about it!"

The duo are in line to potentially meet at the Qatar 2022 World Cup later this year in Group B, with both men expected to be included when England and the USMNT announce their squads.

Turner's lack of match-time in domestic competition has presented Gregg Berhalter with a potential headache over his inclusion, though his rich form in the Europa League should dash any doubts over his place.

Either way, the shot stopper is unconcerned about his inclusion, and says he can only support whatever eventual call is made by his international boss.

"I'm just focused on what I can control and what I have before me," he added. "I think I'm in a good position to play at the World Cup.

"But at the end of the day, if Gregg decides than Zach [Steffen] is the way forward, I stand behind the decisions that he makes. Obviously I want to play. But you can only control so much."

Chelsea co-owner Behdad Eghbali does not believe many clubs are interested in a revival of the Super League, despite a new proposal for the competition being in development.

The Super League's launch failed in spectacular fashion last year, with nine of the 12 founding clubs withdrawing in the face of fan, media and player pressure.

While all six English members quickly reversed their support for the competition, Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid, as well as Juventus, remain committed to the project.

Media executive Bernd Reichart has been recruited to head up plans for a relaunch, and said on Wednesday: "Even fans will have a lot of sympathy for the idea".

However, Eghbali – part of the Todd Boehly-led consortium which acquired Chelsea earlier this year, says "vocal" duo Barca and Madrid are those most interested. 

"I think the sport needs more premium high-quality matches and content, but it doesn't have to be a Super League," Eghbali said at an event in New York on Wednesday. 

"Todd went there on an All-Star Game, the baseball talent competition or draft generates £200million to £300million of revenue on a Monday or Tuesday each year, none of that exists in the English Premier League. 

"Could there be a Premier League versus Serie A game? Could you see pre-season matches producing more premium content on the pitch? You could.

"But structurally, given how botched that episode was, does anybody have any appetite for something like that? A couple of teams in Spain do and they are vocal about it, but everyone else doesn't want to go there anymore."

Reichart, however, claims the Super League project is "very alive", though he was keen to stress the ability to qualify through sporting merit must exist in any reworked format.

"[The Super League is] very alive, there are some who want to declare that it is dead, but if they say it a lot, there is much to suspect," he told Cadena SER on Wednesday.

"There are clubs in Europe that surely share the vision of Juventus, Real Madrid and Barcelona, and now they have the opportunity to contribute what they think.

"It is a long road, but we have the humility to do it step by step, but without pause. The hand is extended to all the members of European football, we want to be inclusive.

"The concept of a fixed position is not something that we are currently contemplating. The design of the format ultimately has to be the result of dialogue, but we don't have a predefined format, the dialogue we propose is real and that's why I don't want to speculate on how it will definitely be. Sporting merit will be applied to all members of that Super League."

Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez is a "goal machine" and will only improve as he grows in confidence, according to team-mate Kostas Tsimikas.

Nunez scored his second goal in his last two Premier League starts to guide Liverpool to a 1-0 win over West Ham on Wednesday, a result which moved Jurgen Klopp's men to within four points of the top four.

The Uruguay striker was criticised by some for starting slowly following his big-money move from Benfica, but he has now hit five goals for Liverpool in all competitions this season.

That tally has only been bettered by two of his team-mates: Mohamed Salah (nine) and Roberto Firmino (eight).

Asked about Nunez's qualities, Tsimikas said: "He's always there. He can score with the left, with the right, with the head – he's a goal machine.

"He needs confidence, [which] is coming, and I hope for him all the best [to] score more and more goals to help the team, to give us more wins. For us, he is a very, very important player."

Tsimikas teed up Nunez's headed winner with a pinpoint delivery from the left flank, and has now provided five assists in all competitions this season – a tally only matched by Diogo Jota among fellow Liverpool players.

The Greece international was particularly pleased to have laid on a goal for Nunez, adding: "It's a very good moment for me. Especially because it was a cross for Darwin, because I wanted to assist him."

Tsimikas, quoted on Liverpool's website, said: "I'm very, very happy for him because I know he wanted to score also. Obviously he would [want] to score more goals but hopefully he keeps his energy and his goals for the next games. 

"I'm very, very happy for that. Every day, I work to make better crosses and to have better performances. So, I'm very happy for that."

Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 29 Premier League games at Anfield (W22 D7), and have scored 100 goals against West Ham in the competition, making the Irons the fourth side they have reached a century of goals against, after Newcastle United, Arsenal and Tottenham.

Erik ten Hag should offload Cristiano Ronaldo in January if the Portugal striker is not part of his Manchester United plans, Rio Ferdinand has said.

According to former United captain Ferdinand, the stature of Ronaldo means that even as a fringe first-team figure, his presence will loom large.

Ferdinand was reacting to Ronaldo walking away from the United bench early on Wednesday and heading down the tunnel before the end of the game against Tottenham.

That was an issue Ten Hag refused to address after the 2-0 Premier League win at Old Trafford, saying it was a matter to resolve on Thursday. The Athletic reported Ronaldo left the stadium soon after his walk-off.

Ferdinand said on his FIVE YouTube channel: "My only thought could be that Cristiano's being saved for the weekend against Chelsea.

"That's the only way I see it, logically, that he didn't play today. I think Ronaldo will be absolutely fuming with that, naturally. I wouldn't expect anything different from him."

Ferdinand has urged manager Ten Hag to think diligently about how he handles the Ronaldo situation, given the attention that is given to the 37-year-old five-time Ballon d'Or winner.

Marcus Rashford started as United's principal attacker against Spurs and had an impressive game, with United scampering with intent and pressing impressively against Spurs.

It was a game where Ronaldo's presence was not missed, until the moment he grabbed the attention by casually strolling out of sight.

His contract runs to the end of the season, and Ferdinand said: "I think the big problem Erik ten Hag's got is, coming up to this window, he needs to think very carefully about what he does.

"if he doesn't see Cristiano Ronaldo as a starter in his team more often than not, I think he has to release him from his contract, let him go."

Ronaldo embarked on a second spell at United last season, having previously starred for the club prior to an £80million switch to Real Madrid in 2009.

Ferdinand said it was "not fair on anybody" for Ronaldo to always be central to the United narrative if he does not start games.

"You think why did Manchester United not let him go, if Erik ten Hag kind of knew he wasn't going to be part of his main plan," Ferdinand said. "The manager surely would have known before the season started.

"It's going to be something that probably hampers him, the manager, going forward until the day Cristiano leaves the football club, because of how big he is, because of how much of an icon, how much of a superstar, he is."

Cristiano Ronaldo must have had good reason for walking away from Manchester United's 2-0 triumph over Tottenham on Wednesday, claims former team-mate Nani.

An excellent performance from United saw them dominate Spurs at Old Trafford, as a deflected Fred strike and a sublime finish from Bruno Fernandes gave them an important victory over a top-four rival.

However, unused substitute Ronaldo headed along the touchline and down the tunnel before the final whistle blew. According to a report in the Athletic, the 37-year-old went on to leave the stadium early too, instead of celebrating with team-mates.

Despite his side's superb display, United manager Erik ten Hag was forced to field questions over Ronaldo's premature exit after the game, telling Amazon Prime he would "deal with" the matter on Thursday.

Nani, who played with Ronaldo for United as well as Portugal, defended his former team-mate before suggesting Ronaldo likely had valid reasons for his early departure.

"I don't know what happened in that moment," Nani exclusively told Stats Perform. "Maybe he had to go to the bathroom.

"Everyone knows he is a professional, very big professional."

Nani, now playing in Australia's A-League for Melbourne Victory, did not watch United's game against Tottenham, but he knows how being an unused substitute would feel for Ronaldo, and he suggested the early walk-off was not as significant as some have made out.

"He works really hard to be on the field. Maybe [there can] probably be a little bit of frustration there on not being an option to play," Nani said.

"But this is his desire, to be on the field and play. But I think it's not a big deal because there is a reason probably."

Cristiano Ronaldo displayed "unacceptable" behaviour by walking off as Manchester United were putting the finishing touches to a victory over Tottenham, according to Gary Lineker.

The Portugal great, who was an unused substitute in Wednesday night's game at Old Trafford, walked along the touchline and down the tunnel before full-time.

According to a report in The Athletic, Ronaldo kept going and immediately left the stadium, rather than celebrate with team-mates after what was arguably the team's best performance of the season.

United were excellent as they secured a sixth Premier League win of the season to go fifth in the table, thriving without having to call on the 37-year-old Ronaldo.

The fixture was one in which Ronaldo hit a hat-trick last season, but he was a spare part in United's 2-0 win this week, only for the early exit to draw attention to himself again.

United manager Erik ten Hag said he would "deal with" the matter on Thursday.

Former Tottenham and Barcelona striker Lineker, presenting the BBC's Match of the Day programme, suggested Ronaldo had overstepped the mark.

"Cristiano Ronaldo: now we all know what a great player he's been and stuff like that, but walking off the pitch as a substitute with two minutes to go, before the game is finished, I'm sorry, but that's unacceptable. That's poor, isn't it?" Lineker said.

Pundit Micah Richards, a former Manchester City defender, agreed Ronaldo was out of order.

"It's so poor," said Richards. "For someone we've looked up to for so long, one of the greats of the game, to do that when your team are winning, making it about him, it's unacceptable."

United were terrific in front of their home fans, racking up 28 shots to Tottenham's nine, with goals coming from Fred in the 47th minute and Bruno Fernandes in the 69th. Their defence was also impressively stout, allowing Tottenham to only accumulate 0.48 expected goals.

Speaking to Amazon Prime after the contest, Ten Hag said dealing with Ronaldo was a problem for another day.

"I will deal with [Ronaldo] tomorrow, not today," he said. "Today we celebrate this victory, and now we have to recover from this."

Ten Hag said in a subsequent press conference that he chose Marcus Rashford rather than Ronaldo because of the England forward's pressing qualities.

"What we needed was we needed good pressing, you need a good counter-press, because from there you can create chances," Ten Hag said.

"Offensive-wise you need dynamic, so that is what Marcus can give you in a game."

Barcelona, Liverpool and Chelsea are reportedly all interested in 21-year-old Benfica midfielder Enzo Fernandez.

Fernandez arrived at Benfica from River Plate just four months ago in June for a fee of €10million, and immediately took the Primeira Liga by storm, with the league naming him August's player of the month.

He has since helped Benfica to an undefeated record in both the league (8W 1D) and the Champions League (2W 2D), playing in every game, and his exploits in back-to-back draws against Paris Saint-Germain seem to have convinced some of the world's top clubs that he is up to the level.

TOP STORY – WORLD POWERHOUSES CLAMOUR FOR 21-YEAR-OLD BENFICA MIDFIELDER

According to a report from Sport, Barcelona had the chance to sign Fernandez for €10m but opted against it, allowing Benfica to swoop in, and he is now said to be valued at over €50m.

That figure could continue to rise as well. Having made his senior international debut for Argentina in September, Fernandez could play a significant role in his country's World Cup campaign as they enter the tournament on a 35-match unbeaten streak.

The report claims Barcelona will face opposition from Premier League giants Liverpool and Chelsea, and while there is no indication that Benfica would be willing to let Fernandez go six months into a five-year contract, the club that specialise in turning a profit in the transfer market could be faced with an offer they cannot refuse.

ROUND-UP

– 90min is reporting Chelsea have made Napoli striker Victor Osimhen their priority forward target, following reports they are also heavily interested in RB Leipzig's Christopher Nkunku and Lille's Jonathan David.

– According to Sky Sport in Germany, Everton have also been keen on Lille's David, with the 22-year-old Canadian tied with Neymar for the most goals in Ligue 1 this season (nine in 11 games).

– The Evening Standard is reporting Chelsea are also weighing up moves for Borussia Dortmund's teenage English star Jude Bellingham, as well as West Ham's Declan Rice.

– Arsenal are said to be joining Barcelona and Real Madrid in the chase of 16-year-old Palmeiras striker Endrick, per FourFourTwo.

– Calciomercato claims Milan are considering a move for Chelsea's Hakim Ziyech in January, with Chelsea said to be open to a loan move for the 29-year-old.

Antonio Conte acknowledged Tottenham must do better in big games after they were beaten 2-0 at Manchester United.

Goals from Fred and Bruno Fernandes condemned Conte's side to only their second Premier League defeat of the season, having also been beaten 3-1 at leaders Arsenal earlier this month.

Spurs have made an otherwise impressive start to the campaign and still sit third in the table, level on points with second-placed Manchester City and three ahead of Chelsea in fourth, albeit having played a game more than both.

However, speaking to Amazon Prime, Conte pointed to the difference in spending power between his club and United, who forked out more than anyone in England in the last transfer window to bring in the likes of Casemiro, Lisandro Martinez and Antony.

Spurs also spent money on Yves Bissouma, Djed Spence and Richarlison among others, but the Brazilian was unable to feature at Old Trafford due to injury.

"I consider United a really good team," Conte said. "You know very well the potential of this club, what they did in the transfer market and what money they can spend. For sure, we are speaking about two different levels.

"At the same time, I think in this type of game we can do much better.

"We are struggling. We struggled against Chelsea, we struggled against Arsenal, we struggled today against United."

Spurs conceded 28 shots on their goal from the hosts, including 19 in the first half, while managing only nine of their own all game, with just two on target.

"United deserved to win, they played a really good game," Conte conceded.

"For our side, in this type of game when the level has got to be high, we need to improve a lot. We have to try to be better than today."

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag will deal with Cristiano Ronaldo on Thursday, but kept his immediate post-match focus on what he felt was his side's most complete performance under his watch in their 2-0 victory against Tottenham.

United were terrific in front of their home fans, racking up 28 shots to Tottenham's nine, with goals coming from Fred in the 47th minute and Bruno Fernandes in the 69th. Their defence was also impressively stout, allowing Tottenham to only accumulate 0.48 expected goals.

In the final minutes, with United defending their lead, Cristiano Ronaldo stole the headlines by making his way down the tunnel early, clearly unhappy about his lack of involvement as an unused substitute.

Speaking to Amazon Prime after the contest, Ten Hag said dealing with Ronaldo was a problem for another day, and that he would spend Wednesday night celebrating a complete performance.

"I will deal with [Ronaldo] tomorrow, not today," he said. "Today we celebrate this victory, and now we have to recover from this.

"I knew [form] would come with [Fernandes]. Sometimes you have periods as a striker or offensive player and you don't score, but all of a sudden you find it back. I think for Bruno it's important he scored a goal, but once again I think he played a magnificent role today.

"There were so many things that were really good – our organisation, our pressing organisation was fabulous, magnificent – also I think the rest of the defence and the counter press was really good. 

"To be fair, I didn't expect it before [the game] because Spurs have played really good this season, and they play really solid – every performance is dead good. I thought we had to be really good to win, and we did. It was a magnificent performance and I hope we set a new base.

"From start to end we dictated the game, and that is what we didn't do against Liverpool and Arsenal. I want to mention that we had more good performances this season, but you see the development in the process and I'm clearly pleased with that."

The result sees United rise to fifth on the table with an even goal difference, and they will look to carry that momentum into a massive fixture at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea on Saturday.

Bruno Fernandes has made it clear he does not need to be the "main man" at Manchester United, though he admits he wants to score more goals.

The midfielder curled home a stunning effort in his side's 2-0 victory against Tottenham on Wednesday, his first at Old Trafford this season.

Fernandes scored 18 Premier League goals during his first full season at United, along with 12 assists, but those numbers decreased last term to 10 goals and six assists, leading to some scrutiny of his performances.

Speaking to Amazon Prime after the game against Spurs, Fernandes conceded he needs to be an influence on the attacking play but his main focus is on the team's results.

"I was concerned because I want to score goals, and I wasn't getting my goals but it was not my main focus," he said.

"The team was getting good results, the last one [against Newcastle United] was not a good result, we want to win every game, but for me, when the team is winning, it's perfect.

"As an individual, I want to get goals and assists, it's part of the game and the position that I play. I need to have that."

During Amazon's coverage, Patrice Evra suggested to Fernandez that he plays better as the "main man" when the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo are not in the side, though the United midfielder made it clear he does not see it that way.

"I don't like the phrase 'being the main man'. I know when some players are on the pitch, I respect their positions and I know I will need to do different things to get the best out of them. I don't have any problems to sacrifice myself to get the best out of my team-mates."

United's win against Spurs came after a relentless assault on Hugo Lloris' goal, with the hosts totalling 28 shots throughout the game as they played out Erik ten Hag's instructions.

"Everyone knows the manager wants to play with intensity, with pressure, to play as high as possible so that whenever we recover the ball, we are closer to the goal," Fernandes explained.

"Obviously, you get frustrated when you don't get the goals, we had many chances in the first half, but the belief of the team makes us win the game today.

"The reaction when we lost the ball up front was probably the most important thing today."