Ronaldo made a series of explosive claims in an interview this week. Here, top sports law experts explain what legal options are now available to Manchester United - and what the club is likely to do next.
, the team's manager, its owners and a succession of former players who he believes have wronged him.
And whether his second stint at United - which he left for Real Madrid in 2009 - ends as initially intended in May now appears in considerable doubt.Probably the most significant sections of the interview centred around Ronaldo's comments about the club itself, its owners and the manager: The club released a short statement on Friday, saying:"Manchester United has this morning initiated appropriate steps in response to Cristiano Ronaldo's recent media interview.The Portuguese has repeatedly been a substitute this season after being passed up for selection in the starting line-up.
"If a player is talking about being betrayed by the club and the club not honouring its commitments to him, then it's not going to be possible to argue that's not bringing the club into disrepute.seek to terminate his contract"Alternatively, they may decide to go down the route of launching disciplinary action, and maybe seeking to potentially fine him."
"I don't think anything like that will happen here, given the language that Cristiano used," Mr Onwere said.The other key contrast with that case is the fact that Lukaku had only recently been bought for £90m and remained a saleable asset to the club. "It's a really intriguing one, because normally clubs steer clear of aiming for termination [of contract] because the value of the player's registration is so important," he said.
In that instance, the Hull City gave notice they would be terminating Jimmy Bullard's contract in 2011 following an incident on a pre-season trip to Slovenia - but Mr Onwere said a settlement was eventually agreed after the player appealed.
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