While it’s very hard to believe Real Madrid will actually be willing to sell Cristiano Ronaldo, it seems Manchester United haven’t given up on the fantasy of bringing him back this summer at a relatively low price thanks to some player exchange, as too many signs are suggesting the Portuguese star isn’t very happy at the moment.
According to the Sun and Daily Mirror, United are adding one up for sale house and the still unsigned contract, which leaves Ronaldo until 2015 to stay at Real Madrid (which sounded a lot earlier this season when the whole mess began, but is now only 24 months away) and thinking this is the time to bring him back. He’s still in his prime, and both the team and him are potentially in the mood to do some business.
Ronaldo cost United £80 million, and although they’ve had some bad signings over the years, there’s a very slim chance they actually spend that kind of money on one player. The current line of thought is offering a package which includes £65 million in payment and adding a player or two: Nani is definitely going to be on the list, and seems like someone Real would be interested in. Wayne Rooney is obviously another name that’s been bouncing around, but for now it looks like United aren’t willing to part ways with the unhappy English forward.
Ronaldo? It’s impossible to know what he’s thinking, especially with Jose Mourinho gone at the moment, which has to make him and other players quite happy. A blossoming love story for two years, everything fell apart in the final season, for various reasons. Now, it might be an inoperable situation for Real with him, although when you think about it, Ronaldo’s initial unhappiness was because of his contract. United won’t be able to offer him a bigger salary, but the battle for the image rights might a bit more comfortable with his former club.
Ronaldo has scored 201 goals in 199 matches for Real Madrid since arriving in 2009, but it has been the title count that’s worrying: Only one league championship and one Copa Del Rey. A disappointment, almost a failure in the opinion of most. Leaving now would almost be like giving up on trying to beat Barcelona, and having the “stain” of being outplayed by Lionel Messi for his entire career.