Before Cristiano Ronaldo could claim his place among Manchester United’s greats, he had to learn a valuable lesson that came against Milan in the Champions League, according to Paul Scholes.
Back in the 2004–05 season, the Red Devils found themselves pitted against the Rossoneri in the Champions League round of 16. Man Utd fell flat in both legs of the tie, suffering back-to-back 1–0 defeats to crash out of the competition to the eventual runners-up.
Ronaldo started both matches, but much like Wayne Rooney and Ryan Giggs, he couldn’t get much going against Milan. Scholes remembers the tie as a turning point in the Portuguese forward’s career.
“The defining moment for Cristiano was in the Champions League, and he was playing against [Paolo] Maldini. Best ever,” Scholes said on podcast.
“He’s still very young. His first season, I can’t remember, but it took him a little time to get used to it. He played against Maldini and [Gennaro] Gattuso.
“[Gattuso] just kept running over to that side and taking the ball off him. It wasn’t a standout performance, but I think from that day, he learned that at some point, he’s gonna have to pass the ball,” Scholes said.
In the second leg of the tie at San Siro, Man Utd managed just one shot on target in 90 minutes. With an attack featuring Ruud van Nistelrooy, Giggs, Rooney and Ronaldo, the Red Devils were held quiet by Milan’s expert defence.
