'He let him down!' - Gary Neville reveals disappointment at Cristiano Ronaldo not 'stepping up' and supporting Ole Gunnar Solskjaer more during turbulent Man Utd return

Solskjaer relived his three-month spell as Ronaldo's coach during the Portuguese's second spell at United while speaking to Neville on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet. And the former United captain said he wished the legendary striker had been more of a leader and supported his manager publicly, recalling when Ronaldo stormed off after a 1-1 draw with Everton, having started the game on the bench.

“When I saw Ronaldo on the bench and he was doing those things to the camera, it was tough. Obviously after the Everton game, when Ole left him out that first time and I remember he walked off, and I felt that was letting Ole down because he was an ex-teammate," Neville said.

Ronaldo scored plenty of goals in his second spell at United but the team performed badly and pressure began to pile on Solskjaer after big defeats by Leicester, Liverpool and Manchester City. He was eventually sacked after being thrashed 4-1 by Watford. “He’s a great player, an immovable object in terms of what he’s achieved, but I thought he should have been with Ole as his ally in the dressing room, especially from the times we had as players together in the dressing room," Neville added. "I wanted him to step up and be the leader in the dressing room, but he didn’t, and that’s why we were conflicted with the situation.”

Despite Neville's complaints, Solskjaer insisted he had a good relationship with Ronaldo. “I had a good relationship with Cristiano and there’s loads of respect between us. I think he behaved really well in his disappointments when I was there," the Norwegian added.

Ronaldo has just returned from suspension due to his obscene gesture during the 3-2 win over Al-Shabab. He is back in action against Al-Raed on Thursday.