Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick has confirmed that Cristiano Ronaldo has picked up an injury problem.
The 36-year-old was left out of the Red Devils' squad for their third round FA Cup win against Aston Villa on Monday evening, and the German boss has now confirmed that his absence was due to a minor muscular injury.
Since his return to Old Trafford in the summer from Juventus, Monday's match was the first outing which Ronaldo has missed due to an injury, with Man United not wanting to risk the attacker.
Rangnick told reporters before Monday's encounter: "I spoke with Cristiano yesterday before training and he told me that he's had some problems for the last couple of days.
"Minor problems, but in the end we decided that it made more sense to not take any risks in a game that could easily last 120 minutes. So, we just decided to rest him, not play him at all.
"I suppose he will be in the stadium, but he had some problems with his hip, with his hip muscle, and we just decided that it would be better for him not to play this game.
"I don't think it's anything serious. He's told me that he's had that problem for the last couple of days. Again, in a cup game when you can play 120 minutes, I thought it would be better to not take any risks."
Ronaldo has netted 14 goals in 21 appearances across all competitions for Man United this season, the club's top goalscorer so far this campaign.
Sammy Wynne
