Manchester United failed to fix a hole in the Old Trafford roof despite being aware that it was prone to sporadic leaks, as occurred at the end of the 1-0 defeat against Arsenal on Sunday.
As United crumbled to a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal over the weekend, the roof at Old Trafford gave way to torrents of rainwater, perfectly exemplifying how the once grand stadium has been allowed to fall into disrepair.
It was a point illustrated by Ronaldo in his explosive interview with Piers Morgan in late 2022 when he hit out at the club, the Glazers and Erik ten Hag before having his contract at United ripped up.
The veteran forward returned to Old Trafford in 2021, 12 years after departing for Real Madrid in 2009, and he revealed that the facilities were exactly the same.
“Nothing changed since I left,” he said on Piers Morgan Uncensored.
“The pool, the jacuzzi, even the gym, even some technology. Even the chefs who I appreciate, lovely people.”
“I thought I would see new technology, infrastructure. I saw things I saw when I was 20!”
Fast forward another year and a half and Ronaldo’s words appear to still ring true with the club still in a worrying state of affairs on and off the pitch.
While it is understood United accept there are faults in the stadium covering that allowed rain to get through on Sunday and in previous occasions, the club denied that the large cascade of water pouring from the south-west corner at the Stretford End was due to a leak in the roof.
Instead, this was because of the huge volume of precipitation that fell which entered a siphonic roof drainage system and caused this to overflow.
It has seen fans rediscover Ronaldo’s old interview and agree with the 39-year-old, who has since signed for Al Nassr after leaving United.
One fan said on social media: “When Cristiano Ronaldo told them the truth about their sports facility and everything at Old Trafford, all they did was to hate him and send him away.
“What’s going on at the club is really deeper than any of us can comprehend!”
Another wrote:
“Cristiano Ronaldo was spot on when he had that interview with Piers Morgan. Old Trafford is falling apart.”
A tweet on X showed glimpses of the damaged roof from changing rooms leaking water profusely into the room.
United are currently eighth in the Premier League – which would be their lowest-ever placement in the division if that is where they end up by next week when the season ends.
Their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal on Sunday was their 14th in the Premier League this campaign, leaving them 32 points off the top.
