Manchester United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has fallen into the same trap as Lionel Messi

Portugal’s exit from the Nations League this week rubber-stamped Cristiano Ronaldo’s worst start to a season since his arrival in the Premier League in 2003.

The former five-time Ballon D’or winner has seen more appearances off the bench than starts this season, and has only clocked up one goal — a penalty in Manchester United’s 2-0 Europa League win over Sheriff. Ronaldo’s underwhelming start to the season would be justification for critics to label the 37-year-old as finally on the decline. However, his competitive rival Lionel Messi came under similar scrutiny last season, with many claiming his slow start to life at Paris Saint Germaine marked the end of an illustrious career.

While both players are admittedly entering into the final stages of their playing careers, Messi has proved that form is temporary but class is permanent with 11 goal involvements in eight matches already this season.

One factor that may have been crucial in Messi’s return to form and something Ronaldo can find hope in, is the Argentines involvement in a full pre-season with PSG this summer.

Time spent on the training ground working with new coach Christophe Galtier has allowed for the diminutive forward to develop the necessary chemistry between Kylian Mbappe and Neymar to play a vital role in the most dangerous attacking line in club football.

Ten Hag’s approach is intricate and requires a high level of concentration, with a pressing system built around high intensity and full understanding from all his players and can only be developed through long hours of repetition and practice.

Yet, amid frustration with United’s lack of signings and their performance last season, Ronaldo missed the team’s pre-season tour of Thailand and Australia, citing personal reasons. Despite missing this key period of pre-season, Ten Hag has still tried to incorporate Ronaldo into his squad. The striker has, however, looked disconnected from the rest of the squad throughout the early stages of the season, particularly in United’s shocking 4-0 defeat to Brentford and he hasn't started in the league since.

While Ronaldo’s problems are largely self-inflicted there is no denying that the limited time spent with the squad this summer has corresponded to issues on the pitch. Luckily for United fans, the arrival of former teammate Casemiro seen Ronaldo integrate more with the squad and, hopefully for the player, result in an improvement in performance.

If Ronaldo hopes to reach the highs of Messi’s recent return to form, he will have to put personal frustration behind him and focus on becoming an integral part of a new system at United.