'It turned out wrong': Solskjær finally admits signing Cristiano Ronaldo was a mistake

Speaking to The Athletic, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said: "Cristiano Ronaldo's transfer was a decision that was very difficult to turn down and I felt we had to take it, but it turned out wrong. It felt so right when he signed.

"The fans felt that at that Newcastle United game, when Old Trafford was rocking [after Ronaldo scored a brace in a 4–1 win]. He was still one of the best goalscorers in the world, he was looking strong.

"When I looked at the fixtures it was going to be a deciding period: Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham, and Leicester City away. Then Chelsea and Arsenal, plus Champions League games. Things went against us.

"It started with Aston Villa at home [a 1–0 defeat] and a late penalty miss. When you have a group you need everyone to pull in the same direction. When things didn’t go right, you could see certain players and egos came out."

Ronaldo left Juventus to rejoin Manchester United on August 31, 2021 in one of the most shocking deadline day transfer in the history of football.

However, age caught up with the Portuguese forward and he left Old Trafford in December 2022 after falling out with new manager Erik ten Hag.