Cristiano Ronaldo "never told" Erik ten Hag he wanted to leave Manchester United before the forward's explosive interview aired.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner parted ways with United by mutual consent last month after a wide-ranging interview with Piers Morgan on TalkTV in which he said he felt "betrayed" by the club.
Ronaldo also lamented "zero" progress since Alex Ferguson departed Old Trafford in 2013, while hitting out at former interim boss Ralf Rangnick and stating he had "no respect" for current United manager Ten Hag.
The Dutchman claimed the 37-year-old never came to him to discuss his desire to leave, though Ten Hag conceded there was no way back for Ronaldo after his public comments.
"Until that moment he never told me 'I want to leave'," Ten Hag told reporters in Spain, where United are training during the mid-season break for the World Cup.
"I have seen most of it. I have to do it. It is part of my job. The interview, I think, as a club you can't accept. To make that step he knew the consequences. But before, he never told me."
An unceremonious exit will somewhat tarnish Ronaldo's legacy at United, for who he had made just four starts in the opening 14 Premier League games this season.
Ronaldo suggested he may be open to leaving ahead of the 2022-23 campaign, according to Ten Hag, though the Portugal forward opted to stay after consideration.
"In the summer we had one talk," he added. "He came in and said 'I will tell you in seven days if I want to stay'. He came back and said he did. Until that moment [the interview] I never heard anything [else].
"I like to work with world-class players. I know they can make a difference and help you to achieve your objectives.
"I wanted him to stay from the first moment until now. I did everything to bring him into the team because I value his quality.
"We wanted him to be part of our project and for him to contribute to Manchester United because he is a great player and has such a great history."
Ronaldo has been widely linked with a big-money move to Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr but Ten Hag has little interest in what the striker does next as his focus remains with United.
"I don't want to spend energy on that. It is the past. We want a new future of Manchester United and he didn't want to be part of it," he continued.
"All my accountability is in favour of the club and the team. They are the decisions I have to make and it doesn't matter which person it is.
"It is about how we perform now. I believe our performances will confirm that we are going in the right direction."
Luis Enrique insists PSG will 'celebrate' Ligue 1 title, despite wait for confirmation
Luis Enrique insists Paris Saint-Germain are "going to celebrate" winning the Ligue 1 title, despite their third successive domestic crown not quite being mathematically secure.
PSG missed the chance to seal the deal when they were held to a 3-3 draw by relegation-threatened Le Havre, who led 3-1 at one stage at Parc des Princes.
Despite seeing that opportunity go begging, Luis Enrique's side are 12 points clear of second-place Monaco, who have a game in hand, with three matches remaining.
But the Spaniard knows the job is "effectively" done, with his team needing just one more point and boasting a 29-goal advantage over Monaco.
"Today, we have effectively won the league, given the goal difference, so we are certainly champions - even if we don't get any more points," he told reporters at his post-match press conference. "We have a 29-goal advantage, and we are going to celebrate the title.
"It was a strange game in a footballing sense, because our opponents did so little in attack, yet they scored three goals. I don't think I have ever seen anything like that in my career as a coach.
"They are well drilled and defended well, I must admit, so I congratulate them on that. We deserved to win it from the beginning, but that is football.
"Our fans are incredible. We were losing 1-0, 3-1, and they kept supporting us. It is impossible for the players to stop fighting. We managed to draw later on and effectively win the league thanks to the supporters, and their positive attitude."
With the Trophee des Champions already in the bag, PSG are on course to win four trophies this season with Borussia Dortmund awaiting in the Champions League semi-finals, and a Coupe de France final against Lyon to look forward to.
Luis Enrique insists his players' main focus is on delivering that elusive Champions League crown, having narrowly missed out on the title four years ago following a 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in the final.
"We have won two of the four trophies already, and we are going to try and reach the Champions League final now," he added. "That is the goal, and that is what we are going to put all our commitment and effort into.
"I think the team is in the best form of the season, without any doubt."
Inter 2-0 Torino: Nerazzurri ease to win in party atmosphere
Hakan Calhanoglu scored twice to give newly-crowned Serie A champions Inter a comfortable 2-0 win over 10-man Torino on Sunday, extending their unbeaten league run to 28 games.
It was a party atmosphere at the San Siro with confetti and fireworks before kick-off as the Inter fans continued to celebrate the Scudetto title they secured on Monday with a 2-1 derby win over Milan.
Inter's win over Torino moves them onto 89 points, 19 clear of Milan with four games remaining.
The Torino players gave Inter a guard of honour as they entered the pitch and Inter coach Simone Inzaghi answered the crowd's call for him to celebrate with them.
In the first Serie A game to be officiated by an all-female refereeing team, four minutes after half-time Maria Sole Ferrieri Caputi sent off Torino's Adrien Tameze for a foul on Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
Inter made the breakthrough seven minutes later when Mkhitaryan passed to Calhanoglu in the area who drove a shot into the bottom corner.
Calhanoglu converted a penalty four minutes later after a foul on Marcus Thuram and the party will continue into the evening as the Inter players parade through the streets of Milan on open-top buses.
Torino remain 10th in the standings on 46 points.
St. Mirren 1-2 Rangers: Dessers nets winner as Gers keep touch on Celtic
Rangers boosted their Scottish Premiership title hopes as Cyriel Dessers' strike earned a narrow 2-1 win over St. Mirren at the SMISA Stadium on Sunday.
Rangers were ahead with 32 minutes played as Zach Hemming failed to deal with a cross before James Bolton inadvertently put through his own net under pressure from Dessers.
But St. Mirren hit back just five minutes later as Mikael Mandron nodded goalwards, with the ball flying just past the fingertips of Jack Butland before going in off the post to send the teams into the break level.
Rangers needed a response in the second half, and they got exactly that with 18 minutes left to play as Dessers was left with far too much space in the middle to head James Tavernier's cross into the back of the net.
The hosts huffed and puffed for another equaliser but ultimately could not find one as Rangers held on for three much-needed points that move them level with leaders Celtic but with an inferior goal difference, leaving them second ahead of Celtic's visit to Dundee later on Sunday.
St. Mirren, meanwhile, remain fifth in the Scottish Premiership table.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
