Roy Keane and Gary Neville reignite argument about Cristiano Ronaldo

“Are footballers supposed to be perfect?"

Roy Keane and Gary Neville have reignited an argument they previously had about Cristiano Ronaldo and his place in modern football. Neville had claimed that Manchester United were a much better team without Ronaldo in it, while Keane disagreed. Now following Fernando Santos decision to drop his captain, the debate has resurfaced, but this time with Portugal. The five time Ballon d'or was on the bench when he watched his replacement Goncalo Ramos score a hat trick in his place. Despite this, the Irishman doesn't necessarily believe the this means the team is stronger without Ronaldo in it. “Are footballers supposed to be perfect? Cristiano Ronaldo had this attitude 10 years ago, but the following game he would score a hat trick, and he was 27 - everyone would forgive him," Keane said to Sky Bet.

"People say that he makes teams worse – Juventus haven’t done anything since he left them a couple of years ago.   “Against Switzerland, the Portugal manager made a correct decision to replace Ronaldo with someone who offered more mobility up front. He [Goncalo Ramos] scores a hat trick, and everyone looks straight to Ronaldo.

"I always thought there could be a chance that Ronaldo wouldn’t start a World Cup knockout game for Portugal – he’s 37!” Neville on the other hand points out that teams seem to perform better when he's dropped, and that he may kept on the bench for the remainder of the tournament. “Cristiano Ronaldo is the greatest player I’ve ever seen, and despite what he may think, I love him to bits – he is unbelievable. His long-term legacy is set. “If he came out and did interviews where he said he was angry, I would’ve sided with him more, but bar his interview with Piers Morgan he hasn’t spoken publicly – or done an interview with the club. "Portugal’s best performance of the tournament, the 6-1 win over Switzerland, was without him – and they looked much more mobile. João Felix and Bruno Fernandes really came alive. "This reminds me of United – they are better when he is not in the team.”