Tottenham Hotspur defeated by Cristiano Ronaldo, not Man United

DBasia.news – Antonio Conte remains wary of the threat posed by Cristiano Ronaldo, with the Tottenham Hotspur boss claiming his side lost last season to the superstar, not Manchester United.

Spurs will return to Old Trafford on Thursday (20/10), for the first time since Ronaldo scored a stunning hat-trick against them in March.

Ronaldo recorded one of his best performances of the past year in that match, inspiring United’s 3-2 win over Tottenham. However, after that, the Portuguese star has not been able to find his best form especially in the 2022/23 season under the direction of Erik ten Hag.

“Last season he scored a hat-trick against us. We are talking about an extraordinary player, a tip player. We are talking about a player who continues to make a difference for the team where he plays,” Conte said.

“I admire Cristiano a lot, for his professionalism, but I hope he doesn’t explode again, unlike last season, when he scored three goals.”

“We lost 3-2, but we lost to him, not United last season. I remember that moment well, because actually we played a great game.”

Hat-trick that became Ronaldo’s record

Ronaldo opened the scoring against Spurs with a long-range strike before putting United back in front after Harry Kane’s penalty equalized and completing his hat-trick with a powerful header after Harry Maguire had scored an own goal. He did so at the age of 37, becoming the oldest player after Teddy Sheringham to score a hat-trick in the Premier League.