Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo's 'courage' deserves respect

Sir Alex Ferguson understands why Manchester United's Premier League rivals consider Cristiano Ronaldo arrogant but insists the world player of the year should be respected because he is prepared to make himself a target to entertain his fans.

• The Scot admitted he accepted his old foe Arsene Wenger was right to suggest Ronaldo’s extravagant gifts – and his willingness to display them – can inspire opposing defenders to set out to exact revenge on the Portuguese winger.
• Ferguson admits that such special attention is an occupational hazard for the world’s best but believes Ronaldo should be lauded for his courage, not condemned for cockiness.
• He said: “Arsene said that sometimes it appears as arrogance, not that Cristiano is arrogant, and that’s different. I can understand what he’s saying. When a player expresses himself in such an entertaining way, defenders don’t enjoy it.
• “It was exactly the same with George Best when he was a player. It’s not that they’re prepared to do what they do but that they’ve the courage to do it. That’s the wonderful courage Cristiano has, that he’s always prepared to entertain and do something good with the ball.”
• Ronaldo has not always dealt with the physical treatment he is forced to endure well this season, most recently clashing with Newcastle’s Steven Taylor in the St James’s Park tunnel on Wednesday after the centre back left him writhing in agony on the cusp of half-time.
• Taylor only received a yellow card from referee Steve Bennett for the challenge and will face no retrospective disciplinary action, a decision Ferguson clearly feels was too lenient but is happy to accept, seeing as it frees one of Newcastle’s most important players to line up against Chelsea next week.
• Ferguson said: “It doesn’t do us any good if he’s punished after the game, but he should have been punished during it.
• “We don’t want him suspended now, though, because it means he can play against Chelsea and Arsenal, so I’m not at all upset about it. It would be devastating for them to lose him given the injuries they’ve got at the moment.
• “I didn’t think Cristiano was badly treated on Wednesday. The game was played very fairly and in a good spirit. Newcastle worked their socks off and we don’t have any worries about it at all. The referee handled it pretty well but didn’t see one incident. It’s over with now.”