Cristiano Ronaldo confirms Man Utd return date
By Sean Walsh
Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed that he is planning to make his Manchester United return on Sunday against Rayo Vallecano.
The forward has missed all of the Red Devils' pre-season so far after being granted time off for personal reasons, though he is also attempting to engineer a move away from Old Trafford in search of Champions League football.
Man Utd confirmed on Friday that Ronaldo will not be travelling with the squad to face Atletico Madrid in Norway on Saturday.
A fan account posted Man Utd's 21-man party to face Atletico on Instagram, to which Ronaldo commented 'Sunday the king plays'.
After facing Atletico on Saturday, Man Utd return to Old Trafford to take on Rayo Vallecano the following afternoon.
Erik ten Hag, who will take charge of his home game since taking over from Ralf Rangnick, is attempting to give appropriate game time to all of his squad over the weekend ahead of their return to Premier League action next week.
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The Red Devils begin the new campaign at home to Brighton next Sunday, before travelling to west London to take on Brentford the following Saturday.
Ten Hag's first big test comes on Monday August 22 when Liverpool visit Old Trafford. Jurgen Klopp's men ran out 5-0 winners in last season's meeting.