Rumors continue to circulate that Manchester United star Cron may be interested in returning to the team, but he has chosen to refuse to report to the team. According to the British media, the 37-year-old Portuguese international was absent due to "family troubles", which United officials understood and did not penalize him. Nevertheless, the team still expects Cron to return to the team before July 17 to participate in the warm-up match in Australia.
While most media outlets believe that Cron has decided to leave United and will no longer be involved in the squad training, there are also reports that Cron will not be able to travel with the team to Asia due to his fiancée Georgina's post-partum depression and his need for companionship.
United's management reportedly believes Cron has a reasonable explanation and will not be held accountable even though he missed four Asian warm-up matches.
However, United boss Tannhäuser still holds out a glimmer of hope that if Cron can arrive in Australia before July 17, he will still have a chance to play in the warm-up matches against Crystal Palace and Aston Villa. Otherwise, he will have to stay in England and wait for the team to return, missing most of the pre-season preparations.
Meanwhile, United are actively negotiating with Kirsten Allison to sign for the club, hoping he will arrive in Australia in time to join the team.