Those of a Manchester United persuasion have taken to social media in their absolute numbers on Friday evening, to take aim at Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ralf Rangnick’s troops of course marked their return to action a short time ago, welcoming Championship outfit Middlesbrough to Old Trafford for an FA Cup 4th-round clash.

The Red Devils, for obvious reasons, were viewed as widespread favourites to advance ahead of kick-off, with boss Rangnick having taken few chances in naming a near full-strength starting XI at the Theatre of Dreams, too:

Upon the final whistle sounding in extra-time on the back of a hard-fought 120 minutes, however, the two sides could not be separated.

After Jadon Sancho capitalised on a lengthy spell of dominance on the part of the hosts to finally open the evening’s scoring inside 25 minutes, Matt Crooks drew Middlesbrough level just beyond the hour mark, in altogether controversial fashion:

Proceedings, in turn, were sent to penalties.

And what a shootout ensued…

After 15 successive spot-kicks were dispatched with authority, Anthony Elanga stood over the ball for Manchester United, aware that the club’s FA Cup hopes for the season lay in his young hands.

The Swede, however, failed to hold his nerve, blasting a dismal effort some way clear of the Middlesbrough crossbar, to send Chris Wilder’s men marching on to the competition’s 5th round.

CR7 slammed

Over on the red half of Manchester, on the other hand, the inquest will now get underway.

The fact of the matter remains that, in truth, Boro should never have even been afforded the opportunity to push proceedings to a shootout, with the evening’s hosts having been responsible for countless glaring misses in front of goal.

The likes of Marcsus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes, in turn, have since been singled out for heavy criticism.

None, however, has been more widely targeted than United talisman Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Portuguese icon looked some way off the pace throughout proceedings on Friday night, and was even responsible for fluffing his lines from twelve yards early in the clash before later finding the net during the shootout.

Some have therefore gone as far as to suggest that Ralf Rangnick’s squad would be better off without Ronaldo’s services, with just some of the highlights from across social media showcased below:

 

Manchester United ‘step up’ pursuit of number one midfield target as overhaul set to commence

Arsenal up, Manchester United down: How the Premier League table would look without VAR