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ST ANDREWS, United Kingdom — A tearful Tiger Woods said he may never get the chance to grace a British Open at St Andrews again after missing the cut on Friday with a score of nine-over-par for his two rounds.

The 15-time major winner won two of his three Claret Jugs at the home of golf, but admitted to struggling just to walk the 18 holes after a major car crash last year left him needing emergency surgery on his right leg.

Most of the damage to Woods’ chances of making the weekend was done on Thursday when he posted a six-over round of 78 to match his worst ever start at the British Open.

He optimistically targeted a 66 to get back to the projected cut level of even par on a day of low scoring as overnight rain softened up the fast-running fairways.

However, that never looked a realistic aim with the physical toll of the crash clear to see.

“It’s hard just to walk and play 18 holes. People have no idea what I have to go through and the hours of work on the body, pre and post, each and every single day to do what I just did,” said Woods.

A birdie at the third sparked hope for the huge galleries that one of the game’s all-time greats could produce a round to remember.

But bogeys at four and six quickly snuffed out any chance of a rally.

After a run of nine straight pars, a double-bogey at the 16th rubbed salt into the wounds of a painful few days for the American.

Woods still received a standing ovation as he walked up the 18th fairway and wiped away tears before completing his round of 75.

“I had a few tears. I’m not one who gets very teary-eyed very often about anything,” added Woods.

“To me it felt like this might have been my last British Open here at St Andrews. The fans, the ovation and the warmth, it was an unbelievable feeling.”

‘Nothing planned’

Questions will now be asked over what the future holds for the 46-year-old.

He belied his physical ailments to make the cut of both the Masters and PGA Championship earlier this year, but withdrew from the PGA after a nine-over-par third round.

His world ranking has slipped to 994 as he saves what golf he has left for the majors.

But as a former winner, Woods will have an exemption to qualify for the British Open until he is 60.

“I have nothing planned, zero. Maybe something next year, I don’t know, but nothing in the near future. This is it. I was just hoping to play this one event this year.”

Woods said his experience over the past two days reminded him of the farewells he had witnessed to Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus at St Andrews with not just the fans but fellow pros keen to offer their support.

US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick, who was playing alongside Woods, said the scenes on 18 gave him “goosebumps”.

“It was incredible. It’s something that will live with me forever, for sure,” said Fitzpatrick.

“It’s thoroughly deserved and I think towards the end of it, you could see he was a little bit emotional as well. It was a big deal.”

Scottie Scheffler is hoping to become the first player since Woods in 2005 to win the Masters and British Open in the same year.

And the world number one believes Woods’ competitive spirit may yet see him return to St Andrews.

“I don’t know if this will be Tiger’s last one here,” said Scheffler. “He’s a pretty resilient guy and he loves to compete.

“Any time you can see that guy out on the golf course, especially The Old Course, it’s really special.”

BERLIN — Bayern Munich confirmed on Saturday they have agreed a deal with Barcelona for the sale of Poland star Robert Lewandowski to the Spanish club.

“We have a verbal agreement from Barcelona. It’s good for both sides that we have clarity,” Bayern president Herbert Hainer said on the club’s Twitter account. 

“Robert is a very deserving player, he has won everything with us. We are incredibly grateful to him.”

Bayern did not give details but Spanish and German media reported the two-time FIFA men’s player of the year had agreed a four-year deal worth 50 million euros ($50.4m), including 5 million in potential add-ons. 

Forward Lewandowski told German television he would be joining the Barcelona squad on their tour of the United States from July 18-31. 

Media reported he would undergo his medical in Miami.

The agreement between the two teams closes the standoff with the 33-year-old who said at the end of May “it is certain that my story with Bayern has come to an end”. 

Bayern had only offered Lewandowski a one-year extension to his contract, which expires in the summer of 2023.

He was also unhappy with the salary offered and had clashed with the Bavarian club’s coach Julian Nagelsmann over tactical choices.

Although he resumed training with Bayern a few days ago, Lewandowski arrived late each time, except this Saturday, when he took the opportunity to bid farewell to his teammates.

The official presentation of the Bayern squad then took place at 15:00 local time (13:00GMT) without him.

With his imminent arrival, Barcelona continue to strengthen with the ambition of returning to the forefront of the European scene. 

He is the club’s fourth summer transfer after Ivory Coast midfielder Franck Kessie from AC Milan and Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen on a free transfer, and Brazil winger Raphinha, recruited for 70 million euro from Leeds.

A very generous transfer window for a club which suffered from an abysmal debt, exceeding 1 billion euros, a few months ago.

Double European top scorer, Lewandowski, who turns 34 next month, can bring experience to supervise a very young group, carried by Ansu Fati, Pedri, Gavi and Ferran Torres.

Lewandowski joined Bayern in 2014, scoring 344 goals in 375 competitive matches and broke the Bundesliga single-season scoring record. 

He won the Bundesliga in each of his eight seasons with the club as well as the Champions League, the Club World Cup and three German Cups.

This season again, “Lewy” scored 42 goals in 50 matches in all competitions, including 35 goals in 34 league matches and 13 goals in 10 Champions League matches. 

The striker’s official presentation to Barcelona is not expected to take place until they return to Catalonia in early August.

Meanwhile, Bayern Munich said on Saturday they had extended the contract of Germany winger Serge Gnabry until 2026.

Like Lewandowski, Gnabry’s future at Bayern had seemed to be in doubt but on Saturday both sides proclaimed how happy they were with the deal.

“I thought a lot about what I want as a player in the coming years, and came to the conclusion that I want to stay at Bayern, win everything again,” said Gnabry, who has won four Bundesliga titles as well as the Champions League, the World Club Cup and the German Cup at Bayern.

Shortly after wishing Lewandowski well at Barca, club president Herbert Hainer welcomed Gnabry’s new deal.

“It’s another strong signal that a player like Serge Gnabry sees his future at Bayern,” Hainer told Bayern’s website.

“With him, Sadio Mane, Thomas Mueller, Kingsley Coman, Leroy Sane and Jamal Musiala, Bayern have outstanding options on the flanks.”

Like Lewandowski, Gnabry had one more season left on his contract

In the end, both parties agreed on a new contract, which will allow the reigning German champions to keep their two main wingers for several years, as French international Kingsley Coman also extended his contract until 2027 earlier this year. 

The Bavarians start their new season on July 30 with the German Super Cup at RB Leipzig.

NAIROBI — Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala is on a mission to show Kenyan runners can shine in sprints.

The 26-year-old heads to the World Athletics Championships aiming to put sprinting on the map in a country where the long-distance runner is king.

Omanyala wears two wristbands on his right arm: one, made of black and green beads, bears the numbers 9:85, his season-best 100m time set in May.

The other, a bracelet crafted from leather and metal, is inscribed with 9:77, the African record he set last September. It made him the ninth fastest man ever, behind four Americans and three Jamaicans.

He will arrive in Eugene, Oregon, where the 100m heats start on the opening morning on July 15, as the third quickest man in the world this season behind the Americans Fred Kerley and Trayvon Bromell.

Making the podium would be an historic first for an African. 

Namibia’s Frankie Fredericks twice won Olympic silver in the 100m in the 1990s, but his one gold and three silvers in the World Championships were all over 200m. 

Omanyala said he has set his sights on at least reaching the final on July 16. 

“I’m targeting 9.6,” he told AFP in an interview during a training session at the main stadium in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

“That will be my biggest achievement. And of course, I am going for the win.”

‘Something big’

As well as Kerley and Bromell, his opposition in Oregon should include Olympic gold medallist Marcell Jacobs of Italy and the 2019 world champion Christian Coleman.

“I am an athlete who runs well under pressure. So I am looking forward to getting better in Oregon, because now everybody who is an athlete will be there,” said Omanyala, who beat Kerley in May.

The young athlete and his coach Duncan Ayiemba have been mapping out ways to make sprinting more popular in Kenya, renowned its strength in middle and long-distance runners.

“Normally it’s long distance in Kenya, so I want the 100 metres to be something big in Kenya this year,” said Ayiemba.

Omanyala became the first Kenyan sprinter to reach an Olympic semi-final at the Tokyo Games last year.

The chemistry student took up athletics six years ago after playing rugby sevens.

“When I started athletics, my aim was to make people know that Kenyans can sprint, that is something that has changed,” he said.

‘Beating the odds’

Omanyala, who hails from western Kenya and is the third of five brothers, said he has had to overcome obstacles, not least the distance.

“In a medium- and long-distance country, it’s a challenge coming up as a sprinter,” he said.

“Even the national federation at some point did not believe there could be a sprinter in Kenya. You have to beat all these odds.”

One hurdle he overcame was being allowed to represent Kenya at the Tokyo Olympics after Athletics Kenya relaxed a decision to prohibit any banned athletes from taking part in international competitions.

He had been suspended for 14 months in 2017 by the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya after testing positive for a banned substance.

“It was a hard 14 months but life has to move on,” Omanyala said. 

“I was just a year old in the sport. But I was still training during these 14 months, I don’t remember a day that I did not train. I still wanted to do this more and more. That made me stronger.”

Omanyala said he hopes he will be a role model for other Kenyan youngsters.

“I believe I opened the way for so many people coming behind me,” he said. “One of the things that I wanted to do is to leave a legacy. I want to leave an industry of sprint in Kenya. 

“I believe I will inspire so many kids, not only in Kenya but in Africa. I believe there is some kid, somewhere, who is looking up and saying ‘I want to be where Omanyala has been’.”

BANGKOK — Erik Ten Hag said he was “satisfied” on Tuesday after getting off to a perfect start as Manchester United manager, but insisted he would not be getting carried away after a 4-0 thumping of arch-rivals Liverpool in a preseason friendly in Thailand.

United started strongly against an unfamiliar Liverpool line-up, cruising to a 3-0 half-time lead through goals from Jadon Sancho, Fred and Anthony Martial at Bangkok’s Rajamangala Stadium, despite being without the unsettled Cristiano Ronaldo who missed the trip for family reasons.

Both managers made wholesale substitutions throughout the 90 minutes and Jurgen Klopp’s stronger second-half Liverpool line-up dominated possession before Facundo Pellistri grabbed United’s fourth on the break, 14 minutes from time.

It gave Ten Hag and his new side a morale-boosting win in their first warm-up outing ahead of the new Premier League campaign beginning next month.

“I am satisfied today,” said Dutchman Ten Hag, who took the reins at Old Trafford less than two months ago. 

“It was a team with a great spirit and we know we are just getting started.

“We made some mistakes in the press, we conceded some chances, but we created a lot.”

Liverpool were unlucky not to get on the scoresheet, hitting the woodwork three times after Sancho opened the scoring in the 12th minute, the England winger slotting home to capitalise on a sloppy clearance from Isaac Mabaya.

Fred’s instinctive, measured chip over the unsighted Liverpool goalkeeper Allison Becker and a crowd of defenders extended the lead in the 30th minute.

And it took just another three minutes for man-of-the-match Martial to make it 3-0 with a fine finish over Allison, after another Liverpool defensive mistake had allowed the striker a clear run at goal. 

‘A bit early for us’

“The game came up a bit early for us. But I saw some good things,” said Klopp. “That is just the start of the pre-season. 

“It is all a learning process and we are at the start of it.”

More substitutions after half-time saw Liverpool bring on experience and flair in the shape of Virgil van Dijk at the back and Mohamed Salah up front.

Big-money signing Darwin Nunez, bought for nearly 100 million euros from Benfica, played the last half an hour, the Uruguayan coming close to opening his account for Liverpool in the 70th minute.

Four minutes from time the lively Salah curled a trademark left-footed shot goalbound, only to see it cannon off the post with Nunez blazing the rebound over the bar when it seemed easier to score.

By then Pellistri had slotted home the fourth after a flowing counter-attack.

“We have to work hard to cut out the mistakes but of course we are happy,” said Ten Hag.

“I know we have good players. We have started to build a team and I am happy with the first game,” he added.

“It will take a lot of time. I have seen a lot of mistakes. Liverpool played three teams, they were not at their strongest. We will not overestimate this result.”

United have come in for criticism from fans for their lack of activity in the transfer market. 

But their faithful did get a glimpse of the club’s lone signing of the summer so far, Tyrell Malacia, after half-time.

“I’m very happy. It feels amazing to be here and to wear this shirt,” said the left-back who was signed from Feyenoord last week.

“It was difficult. It was very hard, but we made it.”

Manchester will now head to Australia for more preseason matches, while Liverpool will face Crystal Palace in Singapore on Friday.

LONDON — Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic is hoping US authorities change entry rules in time to allow him to compete at the US Open, even though he refuses to be vaccinated against coronavirus.

The Serbian top seed beat Nick Kyrgios in four sets on Sunday to win his seventh title at the All England Club and 21st Grand Slam crown overall — leaving him just one behind Rafael Nadal.

Now he is targeting a fourth US Open crown after losing to Daniil Medvedev in the final last year.

But as things stand, his unvaccinated status means he will not be allowed into the United States to play in the tournament, which starts next month.

“I’m not vaccinated and I’m not planning to get vaccinated so the only good news I can have is them removing the mandated green vaccine card or whatever you call it to enter United States or exemption,” said the 35-year-old.

“I don’t think exemption is realistically possible.... I think it’s just whether or not they remove this in time for me to get to the USA.”

The Serb was deported from Australia over his vaccination status in January, preventing him from defending his Australian Open title.

Djokovic admitted it had been a difficult start to the year and it had taken him months to recover.

“It has affected me definitely in the first several months of the year,” he said. “I was not feeling great generally. I mean, mentally, emotionally, I was not at a good place. 

“I wanted to play, but at the same time when I went out on the court in Dubai, the first tournament of the year, I just felt so much pressure and emotions happening. 

“I wasn’t feeling myself on the court. I realised at that point that it’s going to take some time, that I have to be patient, and sooner or later I will get myself in the state, optimal state, where I would like to be.”

‘Tough year’

Djokovic’s coach, former Wimbledon champion Goran Ivanisevic, said it had been a “tough year” for the player.

But he said he never doubted Djokovic would recover, describing him as “heroic”.

“People like him you don’t doubt,” he said. “He’s a great champion. They say maybe took him a long time, but it didn’t take him a long time. 

“It took him the exact time that he needed to recover and to digest all the things that happened to him.”

Djokovic, whose Wimbledon triumph was his fourth in succession at the All England Club, said he was now taking a much-needed holiday.

“I am on vacation,” he said. “Whether or not I’m playing any tournament soon, I’ll definitely be resting for the next couple of weeks because it has been quite an exhausting and demanding period for me the last few months. 

“A lot of tennis, which I was very happy about. I got what I wanted here. Then I’ll wait hopefully for some good news from the USA because I would really love to go there.”

The former World No. 1 said he did not feel under pressure to play a certain schedule.

“I achieved that historic No. 1, weeks for No. 1, that I worked for all my life. Now that that’s done and dusted, I prioritise Slams and big tournaments really and where I want to play, where I feel good.”

Djokovic also said he felt lifted by the Wimbledon crowd on Sunday — he has often faced an uphill battle to win fans over when he has been playing Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal.

“I did definitely feel support and feel love from the crowd today, so I’m very grateful for that,” he said.

“Obviously it’s not a secret that any player would like to have people backing him during the match because at the end of the day this could make a quite big difference with how you feel mentally.”

LONDON — Ons Jabeur became the first Arab woman in the Open era to reach a Grand Slam singles final on Thursday when she defeated close friend Tatjana Maria in the Wimbledon semifinals.

The 27-year-old World No. 2 from Tunisia triumphed 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 and will face Elena Rybakina in Saturday’s championship match.

“I’m a proud Tunisian woman standing here,” said Jabeur.

“It’s a dream come true from years of work and sacrifice. I’m happy that’s paid off and I’ll continue for one more match,” said Jabeur.

“Physically, Tatjana is a beast, she doesn’t give up — I thought she would give up — her touch, her serve and everything on the court is impressive. I hope she continues this way. Let’s not play again, I’m good for now.

“I know in Tunisia they are going crazy right now. I want to see more Arab and African players on the tour. I love the game and I want to share the experience with them.”

Jabeur coasted through the first set against mother-of-two Maria with breaks in the third and seventh games.

The Tunisian fired 15 winners to her opponent’s six in the first set while not facing a single break point.

However, Maria, described by Jabeur as her “barbecue buddy”, did manage to finally break through for 3-1 in the second set off the back of a series of delicate slices.

Jabeur’s 17 unforced errors in the second set compared to the six of the more accurate German, who levelled the contest.

But there was to be no upset win as the 103rd-ranked Maria’s challenge was quashed.

Jabeur secured a double break for a 5-0 advantage before securing her place in history on a second match point.

Moscow-born Rybakina overpowered former champion Simona Halep 6-3, 6-3 on Thursday.

Rybakina broke the 2019 champion four times in the match in a dominant display on Centre Court.

“It was really good, today I was mentally prepared and did everything I could and it was an amazing match,” she said.

“I think it’s going to be a great match [against Jabeur]. She’s a great player, very tricky player. It’s not going to be easy to play against her drop shots and volleys.”

Former World No. 1 Halep had not lost a set coming into Thursday’s match but was immediately under pressure against the big-serving 17th seed.

Rybakina, who stands 1.84 metres tall, raced into a 3-0 lead with an early break of serve and had break points in all of Halep’s service games in the first set.

Romania’s Halep, seeded one place above her opponent, did well to stay in touch but failed to carve out any break points of her own in the first set.

Rybakina, the first woman representing Kazakhstan to reach a Grand Slam semifinal, showed no mercy at the start of the second set, breaking again to establish an iron grip.

Halep broke to love in the fourth game to establish a foothold but a double fault in the following game handed the initiative back to her opponent.

Rybakina, the ace leader in the women’s tournament, sealed an impressive win on her first match point with a backhand winner down the line to break Halep again, wrapping up the match in 76 minutes.

The 23-year-old switched her nationality to Kazakhstan in 2018 to take advantage of greater financial help.

Russian and Belarusian players were banned from this year’s Wimbledon following the invasion of Ukraine.

LONDON — Former champion Simona Halep said she is playing her “best tennis” as she set up a Wimbledon semifinal clash with Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina on Wednesday.

Halep, the 2019 winner, comfortably reached her third semifinal at the All England Club with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Amanda Anisimova of the United States.

Russian-born Rybakina became the first player representing Kazakhstan to reach a Grand Slam semifinal when she defeated Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3.

“Definitely this is my best tennis,” said Halep, who missed last year’s Wimbledon with a calf injury.

“I am trying to build my confidence back, and it’s good.” 

The Romanian 16th seed, who was also French Open champion in 2018, broke Anisimova’s serve four times in the match, wrapping up victory in just over an hour.

“It’s great to be back in the semifinals,” said the former world number one. “I’m very emotional right now. It means a lot.”

The 30-year-old took charge early in the match on Centre Court, racing into a 5-1 lead and taking the set 6-2.

It was a similar story in the second set, with Halep again dominating and going 5-1 up with a double break.

Anisimova dug deep, earning her own break of serve when Halep served for the match but the Romanian stayed calm to serve out for the win.

“I had to stay strong on my legs — they helped me today,” said Halep, who has not dropped a set at Wimbledon this year.

“I also needed my serve — everything was good, and it finished well.”

Rybakina fight back

Rybakina came from behind to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal, firing 15 aces past Tomljanovic, who had also made the last-eight in 2021.

“It is amazing. I am really happy to be into the semifinal. It was a really tough match,” said the 23-year-old Moscow-born player. 

“I started a bit slow, I didn’t serve that well. 

“Maybe I was nervous. She played really well and was defending really good but I just tried to focus on my serve and try to find my way and in the end I found it.”

Rybakina switched nationality in 2018. This year Russian and Belarusian players are banned from Wimbledon following the invasion of Ukraine.

Rybakina fired five aces in the first set but her 10 winners were cancelled out by her 10 unforced errors.

The steadier Tomljanovic did not concede a break point while a single break in the third game was enough to hand her the opener.

Back came Moscow-born Rybakina with a triple break in the second set to level the tie.

She swept through the decider and despite being broken when serving for the match in the seventh game, she made no mistake in the ninth with another ace sealing the win.

Halep and Rybakina have met three times so far, with the Romanian holding a 2-1 edge.

Their most recent clash came at the 2021 US Open, when Halep came out on top in three sets in the third round.

“It is a big challenge for me. We have already played a few times and it was a tough battle,” said Rybakina.

World No. 2 Ons Jabeur became the first Arab woman to reach the semifinal of a Grand Slam on Tuesday, setting up a Wimbledon meeting with her “barbeque buddy” Tatjana Maria. They will meet on Thursday.

AMMAN — Faisali maintained their lead atop the Jordan Pro Football League before Week 10 kicks off and extends to Monday on account of the Eid holiday.

This week, standings had a big change as Faisali beat Aqaba 2-0 before they face Shabab Urdun who dropped to 5th after losing to Sahab 2-1. Hussein are still second after a 1-1 draw with Salt who moved up to 9th, Wihdat beat Sarih 2-0 to move up to third, while newcomers Mugheer Sarhan upset Jazira 1-0 to move up to fourth and Ramtha beat Ma’an 4-1 to move up to eighth.

The upcoming week will see Ma’an play Sahab, Jazira face Salt as they strive to move away from the relegation zone, Sarih play Aqaba, Hussein meet Wihdat in a vital clash and Mugheer Sarhan, who are now fourth, face Ramtha.

Ramtha are the defending champs against traditional rivals Faisali and Wihdat. In two of the 2022 competitions played so far, Faisali won the season opening 35th Jordan Football Association (JFA) Shield title when they beat Ramtha who in turn upset Jordan Cup holders Faisali 2-0 in the 39th Jordan Super Cup. 

In the 2021 season, Ramtha won the Pro League title for the third time in their history ending a 39-year drought. Newcomers to the Pro League, relatively unknown Jalil, overcame Wihdat to win the 34th JFA Shield; Wihdat beat one-time winners Jazira in the 38th Jordan Super Cup, while Faisali beat Salt to win the Jordan Cup. 

In the league Ramtha were trailed by Wihdat second, Salt third, and Faisali fourth. Hussein, Shabab Urdun, Jazira, were trailed by Ma’an, Aqaba and Sahab who managed to hold on to their spot among the top teams as Baqa’a were relegated in their worst season yet and were accompanied by Jalil. Mugheer Sarhan and Sarih were promoted from the First Division.

Since the league kicked off in 1944 with only Faisali, Ahli, Urdun and Homenetmen competing, Faisali are 34-time record league champs while Wihdat won 17 times since they joined in 1980. Although Faisali are the all-time record titleholders, Wihdat’s record is quite impressive. After four years in the Pro League, they won their first title in 1980 and have gone on to win the majority of titles since then. Ahli won eight times, Ramtha and Jazira three times each, Shabab Urdun twice, Amman and Urdun clubs once each.

LONDON — Cristiano Ronaldo’s shock demand to leave Manchester United has thrown Erik ten Hag’s plans into disarray as he scrambles to contain the fall-out from the Portugal star’s power play.

Just one year after returning to United in a blockbuster move from Juventus, Ronaldo has already grown so disenchanted that he is trying to force his way out of Old Trafford.

The 37-year-old is reported to have told United he wants to be sold, with his agent Jorge Mendes said to have held talks with Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Napoli as he seeks a club capable of satisfying Ronaldo’s ambitions.

Ronaldo’s frustration mounted throughout a turbulent campaign that saw United go through three managers as they finished a disappointing sixth in the Premier League.

Although Ronaldo was United’s top scorer with 24 goals in all competitions, his side ended the season trophyless and failed to qualify for the Champions League.

The prospect of playing in the Europa League is hardly appealing to a five-time Ballon d’Or winner who has lifted the Champions League trophy five times.

Ronaldo has one year remaining on his contract and United insist the former Real Madrid forward is not for sale.

Ten Hag had expressed excitement at the prospect of working Ronaldo, but might have to plan a future without his most decorated player.

If Ten Hag had hoped to persuade Ronaldo to drop his transfer demand, the former Ajax boss won’t have been encouraged by the star’s absence when the rest of United’s internationals arrived for the start of their pre-season training programme on Monday.

United are due to fly to Thailand on Friday for their tour of Asia and Australia.

If Ronaldo misses the trip, it would seem almost certain his second spell at United is destined for an abrupt end.

Gloomy presence

Chelsea’s new co-owner Todd Boehly is believed to be intrigued by the idea of starting a new era at Stamford Bridge with the marquee signing of Ronaldo.

It remains to be seen whether Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel would be quite so amenable to the move after Ronaldo’s chequered first season back in Manchester.

While Ronaldo’s quality as a finisher remains unmatched, he rarely showed signs of wanting to engage with the high-tempo pressing game that interim boss Ralf Rangnick hoped to deploy. 

Ronaldo’s lack of mobility and dubious work ethic reportedly convinced Rangnick to tell United football director John Murtough to sell him during the January transfer window.

That request was not granted and Ronaldo remained a gloomy presence around the club for the rest of the season.

He publicly clashed with Rangnick after being substituted during a match at Brentford, while there were reports of issues between the star and United captain Harry Maguire.

Ten Hag will surely be aware that life with Ronaldo rarely runs smoothly and may even be pondering whether he would be better off without the distractions that surround the star.

Manchester City and Liverpool are light years ahead of United at present and for Ten Hag to turn them into contenders for a first English title since 2013, he needs to cleanse a squad that turned toxic last season.

The divisive Paul Pogba’s departure was a step in the right direction and Ten Hag is hopeful of putting his stamp on the squad with several signings in the coming days.

Denmark midfielder Christian Eriksen is said to have agreed a three-year contract, with Feyenoord left-back Tyrell Malacia close to signing.

Ten Hag is also chasing Barcelona midfielder Frenkie De Jong and Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez.

Those deals would be encouraging, but more importantly Ten Hag must resolve the Ronaldo dilemma without letting a volatile situation spiral out of control.