Brian Cox has said the fallout from former Manchester United player Cristiano Ronaldo’s outspoken TV interview with Piers Morgan is “tragic for him but it’s also tragic for the club”.
The Succession star and self-professed United fan, 76, was reflecting on the footballer’s interview while appearing on TalkTV’s Piers Morgan Uncensored.
Speaking about the interview, which aired last week and has since led to Ronaldo’s departure from United, Cox said: “One has to examine exactly where he is coming from.
"It's quite tragic, actually. It's tragic for him but it's also tragic for the club."
Tune in at 8pm for Succession star Brian Cox discussing Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United with Piers Morgan.@piersmorgan | @TalkTV | #PMU pic.twitter.com/6fLvfW7UQD
— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) November 22, 2022
“I think he’s coming from a place where he’s saying ‘I want to go back to the beginning, I want to go back to the glory days when I was a young boy’ and I understand that.
“His heart ruled his head to a degree and in a sense that’s going to be difficult and a manager who is trying to create a new club and there’s going to be a clash.
“And I think it’s quite tragic actually. It’s tragic for him but it’s also tragic for the club.
“I think the club has to be given a break on this, I do think it’s clearly hard because his expectation must have been huge, especially if Alex [Ferguson] persuaded him to go back.
“That must have been a huge thing but he’s been disappointed and you can’t take away his disappointment because it’s not the same club he was at all those years ago.”
On Tuesday, the Premier League club announced Ronaldo, 37, is to leave United with immediate effect after it reached a mutual agreement with the player to terminate his contract.
"Just f*** off!"
Tune in at 8pm for Succession actor Brian Cox going full Logan Roy on Piers Morgan…@piersmorgan | @TalkTV | @TalkTV | #PMU pic.twitter.com/8l5WWZUKRt
— Piers Morgan Uncensored (@PiersUncensored) November 22, 2022
During his appearance, Cox also briefly discussed the new series of Succession – in which he plays the infamous Logan Roy – and despite remaining tight-lipped, confirmed he would be back for the fourth series of the dark comedy drama, saying: “I would rather end on a high.”
Asked if he was always asked to swear in the same fashion as his character, Cox launched into a string of expletives, jokingly telling Morgan: “Don’t bother me anymore. F*** that! F*** off!”
Piers Morgan Uncensored airs on TalkTV every weekday at 8pm.