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The Portugal forward misunderstood a tactical instruction from the then-Madrid manager as a personal attack, prompting an angry confrontation in the dressing room Cristiano Ronaldo  had to be restrained after taking offence to a tactical instruction during  Jose Mourinho 's spell as  Real Madrid  manager. Following details of how Sir Alex Ferguson made Ronaldo cry during the player's first season at Manchester United, the latest extract from 'Cristiano Ronaldo: The Biography' moves on to his time in Spain. With Madrid leading Valencia 2-0 in the first leg of their Copa del Rey quarter-final in January 2013, an exasperated Mourinho "very pointedly" instructed Ronaldo to track back and defend for the final minutes. This did not go down well with Ronaldo, despite Mourinho underlining the importance of not conceding a goal, who shouted at his manager in the dressing room after the game. "After everything I've done for you, this is how you treat

The Belgium international was compared to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi after a terrific campaign in 2014-15 but has since suffered a monumental dip in form OPTA STATS After a memorable season that saw  Eden Hazard  guide  Chelsea  to the Premier League title, scooping up the PFA and FWA Player of the Year awards in the process, 2015-16 was supposed to see the Belgian scale even greater heights. There were even comparisons with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi and, if he wasn't quite at the level of the two best players in the world, Hazard was certainly at the top of the pile of the players trailing just behind - so where has it all gone wrong? After a truly dreadful start to the new season,  Goal  takes a look at the stats that highlight Hazard's startling decline...

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal acknowledged fans' unhappiness over his tactics, but insisted they would not be upset after Tuesday's Champions League win over CSKA Moscow. The Dutchman's decision to replace Anthony Martial with Marouane Fellaini at 0-0 drew jeers at Old Trafford. Wayne Rooney later scored the  only goal of the game  in the 79th minute. "I'm not deaf. That's the opinion of the fans but afterwards they shall not be disappointed," said Van Gaal. Rooney's goal - his 237th for United, moving him joint-second in the club's all-time goalscorers' list, alongside Denis Law - was the team's first in 404 minutes, a run including goalless draws against Manchester City, Middlesbrough and Crystal Palace. United legend  Paul Scholes has blamed the team's lack of creativity  on Van Gaal's tactics, while the 64-year-old's tendency to deploy Martial - who has scored one goal in his past nine games - on t

The Daily Mirror's John Cross says Jose Mourinho is fortunate there is no obvious replacement for the Portuguese currently available.

Jurgen Klopp has told Steven Gerrard he is welcome to return to Liverpool to train with the first-team squad, according to Sky sources. However, Sky Sports understand reports he could again play for Liverpool are wide of the mark at the moment.   The 35-year-old is flying back to the UK on Wednesday after the end of the MLS season with LA Galaxy, who he joined in the summer after 17 years at Anfield. Gerrard marked his MLS debut with a goal, but his campaign ended in disappointment after the Galaxy were knocked out of the play-offs by Seattle Sounders last week and speculation over his future has mounted after  an interview in which he admitted he had struggled since moving to the United States.