Now that the transfer saga of the year has ended in Cristiano Ronaldo remaining at Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson has asked the United faithful not to be too hard on the young scoring phenom.

“The fans have to understand it has been a very difficult time for him,” Sir Alex was quoted as saying in The Telegraph.

“He has been offered all this money - when his dad has died a young man and he is looking after his mother, his sister and his brother.

“He has had a troubled time, and you can understand that.

“But once he knew my stance, he settled down - and as far as we are all concerned, the matter is finished. The boy is a United player - that is what is important.

“We cleared the air in Portugal, and the boy spoke to a few of the players as well,” the Scot added.

“The thing is, he knows he is happy here - and has always been happy here.”