Cristiano Ronaldo is set to miss training on Wednesday with an ongoing hip flexor problem, having missed Manchester United’s derby day defeat to Manchester City on Sunday, March 6.

The superstar footballer is yet to participate in the main team sessions since missing Sunday’s Manchester derby, causing concern for the Red Devils.

The players that didn’t feature in United’s 4-1 loss to City were in at the training ground on Monday, although the Portuguese superstar was not among them.

The 37-year-old was back at Carrington for Tuesday’s session, although he did not train with the group and will miss out again today.

The former Real Madrid forward first missed training on Friday having reported the hip flexor problem to the staff. He later flew back to Portugal and was not at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday to watch his teammates soundly beaten by their local rivals.

Rangnick, however, responded to the scepticism around Ronaldo’s absence by saying: ‘My doctor came to see me on Friday morning before training and told me Cristiano Ronaldo cannot train because of some problems with his hip flexor and the same was true on Saturday and that’s why he couldn’t be part of the squad.’

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United have not yet commented on whether or not the trip to Portugal was sanctioned by the club.   

Ronaldo’s future at the club has been questioned following the uncertainty around his absence from Sunday’s fixture at the Etihad. His sister Katia Aveiro added fuel to the fire when she liked a social media picture suggesting the forward was not in fact injured.

But the superstar arrived at the club’s training complex ahead of the team session on Tuesday, as they prepare for this weekend’s clash with Tottenham Hotspur.

According to The Sun, Ronaldo was the last to leave after being escorted to Carrington by a team of bodyguards earlier in the day. 

Rangnick will be hoping his training sessions can help turn their fortunes around after Sunday’s result saw the Red Devils drop down the table into fifth position.