Earlier in the week, Sir Alex Ferguson played down the idea that Cristiano Ronaldo would be featuring against Chelsea at the weekend, saying, “that was his first game back so it is a big ask to think about Sunday,” after the Villarreal match.

However, Ronaldo seems mentally prepared for the challenges that will come his way this season, and I wouldn’t be too surprised to see him coming off the bench or even starting on Sunday.

“I know that the attempts to intimidate me on the pitch will start again immediately — but everyone finds sooner or later that it is difficult to make me lose my rag,” Ronaldo said. “I’ll be booted again but I will not kick out when it happens. I’m tough and, again, it’s all just part of the spectacle. I’ll do my damage as usual by paying them all back with my goals.”

Ronaldo’s patience is something which is often overlooked. We’ve seen him boil over on a couple of occasions, earning himself red cards, however when you think about the amount of time he spends getting kicked and referees standing by and watching, it’s pretty impressive we haven’t seen him react more often.

Do you think Ronaldo is ready for Sunday?