Benching Ronaldo against Everton 'correct decision,' says Solskjaer as Man Utd fail to win

Something we are not used to seeing is Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench, regardless of the opponent or match, he is always raring to go and play every minute of every match. In an unusual move, Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer decided to bench the five-time Ballon d'Or striker in their match against Everton in the Premier League. The match ended with United being held back to a 1-1 draw and a frustrated Ronaldo walking down the tunnel at Old Trafford. However, Solskjaer has defended his team selection and went to say that not starting Ronaldo was the 'correct decision' explaining that Edison Cavani needed the playing time.

The Norwegian coach told reporters after the match as quoted by Goal.com: "You make decisions for a long, long season and you have to manage the players’ workload. The decision was, for me, a correct one. Anthony Martial came in and did well, scored a good goal. Edinson needed minutes and got an hour, he could have scored."

One point from a possible six for United

In the last two matches, the Red Devils have dropped five points, three against Aston Villa when they lost 1-0, and now two against Everton. United did take the lead late in the first half through French striker Anthony Martial who brilliantly finished a pass laid on by Bruno Fernandes. In the second half, Abdoulaye Doucouré got the ball from Demaria Gray and switched it to Andros Townsend who put the ball into the back of the net to equalise after a razor-sharp Everton counter-attack.

Manchester United dominated possession from start to end with 72% of it but were unable to convert it into many clear-cut chances. Everton were fast on the counter and made life difficult for the United defenders and midfield. Ole will be hoping to get his team out of this bad form, whereas fans would like to see Cristiano Ronaldo on the pitch as opposed to sitting on the bench. Earlier, Ole was under fire for taking Ronaldo off in their match against Young Boys in UEFA Champions League Group Stage that they ended up losing.

(Image: AP)