Ronaldo scores on Man Utd return against Newcastle

Cristiano Ronaldo made a scoring return to the Manchester United team, netting a debut goal against Newcastle United on Saturday.

Ronaldo was thrust straight into the United XI at Old Trafford after sealing his move from Juventus shortly before the international break.

Twelve years and 118 days on from his previous Premier League appearance, it marked the longest gap between outings in the competition’s history.

And Ronaldo was immediately involved in the final third, attempting a game-high five shots in the first half.

The fifth of those found the net to put United 1-0 up, profiting on Freddie Woodman’s fumble from a deflected Mason Greenwood strike.

Only Matt Jackson (13 years and 187 days between May 1993 and November 2006) has gone longer between Premier League goals, with Ronaldo’s previous effort coming 12 years and 124 days earlier against Manchester City in May 2009.

At 36, Ronaldo became United’s oldest Premier League goalscorer since a 39-year-old Ryan Giggs’ final goal in the competition in February 2013. Only Giggs and Paul Scholes have netted for United in the competition at an older age than Ronaldo.

36y 218d – Cristiano Ronaldo is the oldest player to score for Man Utd in the Premier League since Ryan Giggs in February 2013 (39y 86d v QPR), while only Giggs and Paul Scholes have ever scored for the Red Devils in the competition at an older age than Ronaldo. Longevity. pic.twitter.com/SqDG0qRriy

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 11, 2021