Legendary Liverpool John Barnes has accused Cristiano Ronaldo of causing “disharmony” among the Manchester United squad.
Ronaldo scored 24-goals in all competitions during his first season back at United.
But Barnes reckons United would have been better off without the Portuguese international.
A dismal campaign saw United post their lowest points tally in Premier League history.
And despite being top scorer, Barnes has accused Ronaldo of playing for “himself” rather than the team.
Speaking at a William Hill event, Barnes said, via the Mirror: “He causes disunity and disharmony. When the ball does not come to him, he throws his hands up in the air, that’s a great example, isn’t it?
“The harmony at Manchester United is a problem and who causes that disharmony? He walks around as though … ‘it’s the rest of them, I’m doing my job’.
“That’s not what a leader does – that’s what someone who does it for himself does.”
Barnes claimed United would finish higher in the Premier League table without Ronaldo in the side.
He continued: “The fans love him and when things don’t go his way, he’s like… ‘it’s not my fault.’ That is not what a team is all about.
“So we know Ronaldo has done well for himself but would you rather have no-one scoring 20 goals a season and United finishing higher up?
“I think they would be higher up if they had a better team. If the harmony is better, Ronaldo won’t score the goals but the team would be a better team and would be winning matches.”
Barnes went on to suggest that the likes of Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes and Jadon Sancho would all have performed better over the season without Ronaldo at the club.
The trio all endured underwhelming campaigns on a personal level, whereas Fernandes had been United’s talisman before CR7 returned.
