Tight-trousered Ronaldo was the butt of jokes at Man Utd

Manchester United players used to make fun of Cristiano Ronaldo when he was at Old Trafford, says Rio Ferdinand, responding to the winger's claims that he did not speak to his teammates during his time there.

The unlikely row blew up after Ronaldo (pictured above), who now plays for Real Madrid, was questioned at a press conference about his relationship with fellow Bernabeu strikers Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema.

Some observers have contrasted their relative coolness towards each other with the close bond that appears to exist between Barcelona's front three of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

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An annoyed Ronaldo replied: "At Manchester United, I won the Champions League and I didn’t speak with [Rio] Ferdinand, [Ryan] Giggs or [Paul] Scholes. We said hello to each other and that was it... On the field, we fought for the best interests of the team.

"I don't need them to come for dinner. The important thing is that we all get on well on the pitch," he added.

The Real Madrid superstar then walked out when asked about his form away from home in the Champions League.

Questioned about Ronaldo's comments, former Manchester United captain Ferdinand made light of the situation, saying his former neighbour had "gone off me" and that the Portuguese didn't like his cooking.

He then revealed that Ronaldo was often the butt of dressing room jokes on account of his famous vanity. "I actually used to take the mick out of him in the changing rooms, I think he's got the hump. He used to come in in tight jeans and we used to murder him. He didn't get it," he said on BT Sport.

"Ronaldo's point nevertheless stands - that the brilliantly effective Sir Alex Ferguson side of the late noughties did not need strong off-field friendships to ensure cohesion or success," says Sean Gibson of the Daily Telegraph.

Writing prior to Ronaldo’s comments, Jonathan Liew of the Telegraph was also struck by the difference between Messi and Ronaldo.

Messi "exudes a certain childlike delight, as if he is skipping through a magical world of candy-floss and unicorns", he says. Ronaldo, meanwhile, "has never quite shaken off that intense, brooding air of dissatisfaction".

But smiles on the pitch mean little, he suggests. "Dennis Bergkamp was capable of giving great joy, but rarely looked like he was experiencing any himself: a player imprisoned by his genius, haunted by the millions of passes that only he could see. By comparison, Mathieu Flamini is a relatively limited footballer, but an irredeemably happy one."