I would trust the three other names over CR7 for a free-kick if I'm honest, but I agree with penalties.
It's hard to have a definitive answer whether he's value for the money. Of course you can look at jersey sales, social media presence, etc as positive factors and they have an impact on the bottom line, maybe they even more than make up for his wages, that's very possible. That's off-the-field impact. On the field, you can also argue he brings his value as he's scored some important goals and I agree he's the one most likely to come up with something even if he has a terrible game for the most part.
I do have doubts as to whether he will really be a positive influence. He is a winner, and he's in a team that's mostly mediocre in its mentality or drive to win, we have to remember most of those players have never won anything of major significance, they don't know what it's like to win. But there are certain players, like Cavani, who can influence by simply showing up, working hard, being a lending hand to those who ask for it, and that can be a positive. I don't think CR7 lands in that category. I think he's a little more of a bully, and I don't necessarily mean that in a bad way, but he's going to point the finger and demand accountability and with certain players that can work very well, but I simply don't think that's most of that United squad. I think if anything, he will build the team against him little by little, and I wonder if his latest interview is only going to speed up that process.
These are not players that strike me as being incredibly self-critical for the most part, they will look at CR7's word, see what he does on the pitch (very little outside of goals), and consider him as much of the problem as anyone else, I doubt his message will really get through to even 1/4 of the team, and if it doesn't then I think his value within the team is only diminishing. You hope bringing a legend like that back is what's going to help with the mentality, but it's clear from his interview that it's not looking like the message is getting through, and at that point I fear it can only become a malaise rather than a driving force. It speaks more about the team as a whole than CR7 to be fair, it shows you really need a reset on this team and get rid of a lot of players, being careful who you bring in. The next couple of months are going to be crucial to see exactly where United is going to be. It's almost a decade since the last PL win, and this club is in serious danger of having a major drought some fans thought were reserved only for other teams.
