Erik ten Hag CONFIRMS Cristiano Ronaldo is in the Man United squad to play Rayo Vallecano

Erik Ten Hag has confirmed that wantaway star striker Cristiano Ronaldo will be involved in their upcoming pre-season friendly against Rayo Vallecano.

Erik ten Hag's Red Devils will host the La Liga side in their final warm-up match just a week before the Premier League season starts. United host Brighton in their opening league game on August 7.

Ten Hag confirmed the news in his post-match press conference following United's 1-0 defeat to Atletico Madrid in Oslo, saying:

'Tomorrow he will be in the squad. We'll see how long he can play.'

Speculation has been rife regarding the superstar's future, with Ronaldo - the Champions Leagues record goalscorer - keen to join a club competing in Europe's top competition.

However United's unwillingness to let him leave combined with a reported lack of offers from other clubs could see him stay in Manchester for another season.

Ronaldo broke public silence by stating his intentions to play in Sunday's match at Old Trafford in an Instagram post where he announced: 'Sunday, the king plays.'

The 37-year-old hasn't featured in any of Manchester United's pre-season matches so far and was absent from the club's international tours of Thailand and Australia.

He was then further left out of their 21-man travelling squad to Norway despite having returned to the Carrington training complex.

Ten Hag fuelled further speculation that Ronaldo could be in line to start Sunday's fixture against La Liga opponents, stating that players who started on Saturday won't play.

'The players who played today from the start, they will not come on tomorrow. So tomorrow we will have a different starting XI.

'But there are players who came on who can start tomorrow,' he said.

This means attackers Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Anthony Elanga, and Bruno Fernandes won't feature, leaving space in the team for Ronaldo to mark his return.

The 37-year-old's agent Jorge Mendes is thought to be working on Ronaldo's options for the incoming season.

Ronaldo is well aware of the speculation around his future, but in a reply to an Instagram fan account, he said the media was indulging in 'lies'.

'Impossible not to talk about me one day,' Ronaldo wrote. 'Otherwise the press makes no money.

'You know that if you don't lie you can't get people's attention. Keep going that one day you get some news right.' He also attached a crying face emoji and a laughing emoji.