Cristiano Ronaldo was absent for Manchester United for their Tuesday night clash with Liverpool. The Portuguese striker was missing due to compassionate leave. Ronaldo announced on Monday that his and partner Georgina Rodriguez's baby boy had passed away at birth.
The tragic news brought an outpouring of emotion from the footballing world, and both teams lined out at Anfield on Tuesday night wearing black armbands as a mark of respect and condolences.
Cristiano Ronaldo: Manchester United forward grieving death of baby boy
Ahead of the game on Tuesday night, Liverpool fans arranged for a minute's applause in the seventh minute ('7' being Ronaldo's shirt number at United) to express condolences. The Kop end then led the stadium in a rendition of 'You'll Never Walk Alone', in a moving tribute to Ronaldo's late son.
The touching moment saw the iconic Liverpool anthem sweep the stadium, as Anfield collectively joined Ronaldo and his partner in grieving.
This was a touch of class from Liverpool in the first half.
Their fans broke into 'You'll Never Walk Alone' during a minute's applause to remember Cristiano Ronaldo's late baby boy #LIVMUN pic.twitter.com/AEeZOXKtVx— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) April 19, 2022
Cristiano Ronaldo made the announcement of his son's passing on his social media pages on Monday afternoon.
He had announced that he and partner Rodriguez were expecting twins in late October. In his statement on Monday, he thanked the doctors and nurses for their "care and support" and confirmed that their baby daughter had been delivered safely.
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) April 18, 2022
Speaking to Sky Sports ahead of the game, Manchester United manager Ralf Rangnick expressed his condolences for Ronaldo. He said:
It is the worst that can happen. I am a father of two sons myself, so I am fully aware what that means. We're all behind him, we're all with him and we wish that him and his family are strong together.
Ronaldo played for Manchester United on Saturday afternoon and scored a hat-trick against Norwich. He was missed by his teammates on Tuesday night, as a shocking United performance saw them slump to a 4-0 loss against their most bitter rivals.
Some things in life, however, are far more important than football, and Cristiano Ronaldo was in the right place on Tuesday night, grieving with his family.
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