Rested Ronaldo ready for United in European Super Cup

TIL Desk Sports/ Cristiano Ronaldo is as sharp as when he scored twice for Real Madrid in the Champions League final in June and is ready to face Manchester United in the European Super Cup, the Spanish club’s coach Zinedine Zidane said on Monday.

Ronaldo was allowed to report for pre-season training later than his teammates after playing in the Confederations Cup with Portugal and missed the Liga team’s tour of the United States, instead going on a promotional tour of Asia. He returned to full training for the first time on Saturday.

The 32-year-old has not played for Real since the 4-1 win over Juventus in the Champions League final in Cardiff, after which reports emerged from Portugal that he wanted to leave Real after being accused of tax evasion by the Spanish authorities.

Ronaldo, who denied any wrongdoing in a statement released by his agency Gestifute last month, has made no public statement following the original report in Portuguese newspaper Record although Spanish media say he has decided to stay at Real.