DC United boss Wayne Rooney says Manchester United should sell former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo.

Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid have all turned down the chance to sign Ronaldo, who could feature in United's opening Premier League fixture against Brighton this afternoon. Ronaldo has asked to leave Old Trafford, but boss Erik ten Hag insists that the Portuguese superstar remains in his plans for the new season.

"I think United should let Cristiano Ronaldo go," Rooney wrote in The Times. "It's not that Ronaldo can't play in a Ten Hag team. He can play in any team. Ronny will always score you goals.

"But my personal view is that United aren't ready to challenge for the title now, so the aim has to be to build a team that can win the league in the next three to four years, and you have to plan for that.

"If the reports are true that Cristiano wants to leave the club, then United should allow him to go and get a No 9 in who is going to be there for the next three or four years and really help them build a team that can be successful. Ten Hag has to be given time to do it."

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