Former Portugal star Futre claims Man United have 'humiliated' Cristiano Ronaldo

Former Portugal international Paulo Futre has claimed that Manchester United have 'humiliated' striker Cristiano Ronaldo amid the aftermath of his controversial interview with Piers Morgan.

The 37-year-old frontman argued that the Reds had 'betrayed' him, before going on to criticise manager Erik ten Hag, the club's owners and several of his former United teammates.

United are now currently looking at taking legal action against Ronaldo for a possible breach of contract, which could potentially result in his deal being terminated. It remains to be seen what punishment the player will receive, but he is unlikely to return to Old Trafford after the World Cup in Qatar.

While Ronaldo has faced intense backlash for his interview, he has been backed by a number of people in the football world. His fellow countryman, Futre, believes that special players should get special treatment and argues that the United man is right to feel the way he does.

He told Mais Futebol: "Never seen a coach tell Cristiano Ronaldo to enter with two minutes to go. This is creating a conflict, it’s a lack of respect. More than disrespect, it’s a humiliation.

"He’s got five Golden Balls [Ballon d'Ors], he can never get in with two minutes left. Normal players can enter two minutes away.

"Whoever does this to a player who has five Golden Balls is humiliating him. A player like Ronaldo can’t be humiliated. This leads to a number of problems."

Futre - the 1987 Ballon d’Or runner-up behind Ruud Gullit - also said that he would have reacted similarly to Ronaldo.

"The coach has to tell him that 15 or 20 minutes enter. If you don’t say anything and tell him two minutes from the end to get in… I wouldn’t go in! But I was also much more rebellious than Cristiano Ronaldo. From that moment on, the problems came," he added.

Ronaldo is currently in Qatar preparing for his country's campaign in the World Cup. Portugal have been drawn in Group H and their first match, which could also feature United's Diogo Dalot and Bruno Fernandes, takes place on Thursday against Ghana.