Cristiano Ronaldo is pushing to make the Manchester United starting XI for Sunday's Premier League clash with Arsenal at Old Trafford.
The summer transfer window has now closed, with the 37-year-old remaining at the club despite being heavily linked with an exit over the last few months.
The forward has only started one Premier League match for Man United this season, and he again had to settle for a spot on the bench against Leicester City on Thursday night.
Ronaldo is yet to get off the mark in terms of goals this season, but after an impressive cameo in the 1-0 win over the Foxes, head coach Erik ten Hag could decide to bring the Portugal international in from the start.
Here, Sports Mole looks at how the former Sporting Lisbon youngster has performed against the Gunners in the past.
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Ronaldo has faced Arsenal on 17 occasions during his professional career, boasting a record of eight wins, four draws and five defeats against them, while he has scored nine times and provided two assists.
The Portuguese has won five, drawn four and lost four of his 13 Premier League meetings against the Gunners, scoring seven times and providing one assist, including three goals in his two meetings with Mikel Arteta's side during the 2021-22 league campaign.
Ronaldo hit a brace against the North London club at Highbury during the 2004-05 campaign before scoring home and away in the 2007-08 season.
The former Sporting youngster has actually only won two of his last eight Premier League matches against Arsenal, though, including a 3-1 defeat at the Emirates Stadium towards the end of last season.
Ronaldo starred against Arteta's side in the reverse game at Old Trafford, though, hitting a brace in a 3-2 success for the Red Devils, who were under the caretaker management of Michael Carrick.
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The forward has also faced Arsenal on two occasions in the FA Cup, helping Man United record a 1-0 victory in the semi-finals of the 2003-04 competition, but he was a part of the side that lost 5-4 on penalties to the Gunners in the final of the 2004-05 tournament.
Ronaldo also helped Man United overcome Arsenal in the semi-finals of the 2008-09 Champions League, starring in the second leg against them in North London, scoring twice and providing an assist, with the Red Devils running out 4-1 winners on aggregate.
Interestingly, the Portuguese had only netted once at Old Trafford against Arsenal in the Premier League before scoring twice in the corresponding match last term.
Ronaldo is currently struggling to break into the starting XI under Ten Hag, but with Anthony Martial again out this weekend due to an Achilles problem, he could potentially come into the side against the Gunners, who have a 100% record from their opening five games of the new Premier League season.
Matt Law
