Sarah Kelly, the mother of the young man whose phone was destroyed after he slapped Cristiano Ronaldo in the hand on Saturday, has called out Manchester United for making things worse.
Struggling Everton hosted Manchester United in a crucial game for both sides, and Everton came out unscathed in the draw, as United barked toothless throughout the match but didn’t hurt.
Ronaldo, known for his tantrums when things don’t go his way, was seen limping off the field after sustaining some injuries due to an interference in the latter stages of the match. One of the young fans was filming videos of the players, and an angry Ronaldo slapped the phone out of his hand and destroyed it.
The English Premier League, Manchester United and Everton investigations are still ongoing, but footage of the slap has flooded the internet. Ronaldo also took to his Instagram to apologize and invite fans to a match at Old Trafford in a show of sportsmanship.
However, Sarah Kelly, the victim’s mother, rejected the offer while causing an uproar in the media over Ronaldo’s actions and calling for a greater penalty for the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.
On Tuesday, she leveled criticism at United, saying their handling of the situation had “made matters worse” after rejecting any attempts at reconciliation, claiming it was her son’s wishes.
“United took it terribly and made things worse, to be honest,” Kelly said. Liverpool Echo. “The way I see it is, if someone assaulted him on the street and then asked us to go to dinner, we wouldn’t.
“Just because he’s Cristiano Ronaldo, why do we do that? It’s like we owe him a favor, but I’m sorry, we don’t. We turned down the offer to go to United because Jake doesn’t want to go there and doesn’t want to see Ronaldo. He made that very clear.
“It’s not my words, it’s my son’s words. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s about. I affected him more than I did, so I did everything he had to make a decision about him – he doesn’t want to go to United, he doesn’t want to go see Ronaldo. All I’m saying now is that it’s in the hands of the police.”
Ronaldo may face charges because the police are now involved in the investigations, Kelly revealed. The incident is a representation of United’s struggle this season both on and off the field, in stark contrast to the promise of a great season the club has given its fans.
United are currently seventh outside the UEFA Champions League and European positions. But their biggest failure is Ronaldo’s return to Old Trafford, despite the goals he scored for the club.
