Manchester United CEO Ed Woodward will step down from his post in the coming weeks, the club has confirmed. Meanwhile, former Aston Villa star Gabriel Agbonlahor has claimed that Cristiano Ronaldo, too, must be moved on by the club.
The Red Devils have confirmed that executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward will leave his position at the club on February 1 to be replaced by Richard Arnold.
Woodward and United confirmed the former’s decision to leave the club last year, a process that was due to be completed before the end of the calendar year itself. Nonetheless, after assisting the club during the transition from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to Ralf Rangnick, Woodward will finally step down from his role at the start of Febuary.
Much maligned by the fans for his role in United’s decline after Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, Woodward leaves the club seventeen years after joining it. On his departure, the club executive left a simple statement:
”I am honored to have the chance to serve this great club and its fans. I am determined to return that honor in any way I can.”
While Woodward’s departure will be a major shift for Manchester United off the pitch, former Aston Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor believes that there needs to be one similar in magnitude on it.
The Ex-Villa star is of the opinion that the club should look to move top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo on in the summer, since, he thinks, his return has caused them problems on the pitch.
Agbonlahor believes that Ronaldo’s presence is creating a negative situation for the team, as he has now become the main man ahead of the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Harry Maguire.
“There’s going to be tension there. If you look at the whole situation, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will know he made a mistake by bringing Ronaldo in, simple as that,”
Agbonlahor, who won three caps for England, told TalkSPORT.
“Yes, Ronaldo has scored but he’s scored goals that [Mason] Greenwood would have scored, [Marcus] Rashford would have scored in that position.
“For me, I would let Ronaldo go in the summer. Let Greenwood, Sancho, and Rashford play together.”
Ronaldo’s contribution this season has been the topic of much debate. However, the Portugal international is still the club’s top scorer, both in the league (8) and overall (14).
