Cristiano Ronaldo might have left his greatest Manchester United hypocrisy until last

For a man who doesn't like talking in public, Cristiano Ronaldo sure has done a lot of it lately. The Portuguese forward built his reputation by doing his talking on the pitch. Now, though, there is an air of desperation at how he is making headlines for everything but the football.

The World Cup will give Ronaldo an opportunity to remind us all just how good he is, but the real shame is that it has been forgotten for quite a while after a dreadful start to the season for Manchester United.

If his bombshell interview with Piers Morgan last week wasn't enough, Ronaldo followed it up by putting himself forward for media duties with Portugal on Monday, something he has never done in his time back at United.

It gave him another chance to tell his side of the story, an opportunity to hit back at some criticism of him, and a platform for him to insist that it was now time for football to take centre-stage again.

"Timing is always timing," Ronaldo told reporters in Qatar. "From your side it is easy to look at how we can choose timings. Sometimes you write truths, sometimes you write lies. I don’t have to worry what others think. I talk when I want to. Everybody knows who I am, what I believe in."

Ronaldo is right: when he speaks, the world listens. It is a testament to his extraordinary status and career that his words carry such weight, but with such media attention comes enormous responsibility.

That is why there is a real sense of hypocrisy about what he had to say. For a man who claims he doesn't worry what others think, it begs the question of why he then resorted to a high-profile media interview that only pandered to his ego and didn't question any of his own shortcomings.

Ronaldo has had numerous opportunities to express his feelings and use his authority as a power for change since his return to Old Trafford. He hasn't, however.

The 37-year-old was not introduced to the press and has never attended a pre-match press conference in the Champions League or Europa League. He has largely avoided the media and has refused to speak in the mixed zone when given the opportunity.

Ronaldo used Monday's press conference as an opportunity to urge the press to stop asking questions of his teammates about his own situation, but he seems oblivious to the fact that it is a scenario he has engineered himself and one that is amplified by the fact that so many questions about him remain unanswered.

The former Real Madrid forward has still not answered the simple questions of whether or not he really did ask to leave United, if he accepts that United are a better team without him, and why he has been so poor under Erik ten Hag this season.

If he really wants to set the record straight, then Ronaldo must answer the questions that remain unanswered and accept the uncomfortable truths about his own recent poor form.

Ronaldo made some legitimate points when he called out the way the club is run, and for that he will never fully ruin his legacy at the club, but his final acts as a United player should be giving supporters the truth they deserve.

He only talks when he wants to, and he only talks about what suits his interests too.