Today’s edition of Il Corriere Dello Sport reviews Cristiano Ronaldo’s career at Juventus, revealing that Chelsea had an agreement to sign the Portuguese star before his return to Manchester United.
CR7 is expected to leave Old Trafford in January following his explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
Ronaldo accused the club of betraying him, saying that he does not respect his current coach Erik ten Hag.
Ronaldo scored 101 goals in 134 appearances at Juventus before his return to Manchester United in August 2021.
Il Corriere Dello Sport’s editor Ivan Zazzaroni reveals Ronaldo had even more options when he decided to part ways with the Bianconeri.
“When Cristiano decided to leave Turin, he was convinced that the whole world was waiting for him,” Zazzaroni wrote in today’s column.
“He found himself a step away from Chelsea, the club had reached an agreement with Jorge Mendes, but found strong opposition from Tuchel.
“Bayern Munich’s shareholders voted against his signature, while City wanted to sell Raheem Sterling to Barcelona before completing the deal. Borussia Dortmund signalled their availability. Ronaldo initially refused the offer but changed his mind when he realised there were no more options. It was too late.
“Just 20 minutes were enough for Sir Alex Ferguson to welcome his former pupil back after he had subbed a €200m offer from Saudi Arabia.
“It could be his next destination even if Ronaldo would like to remain in Europe, but which club will accept the risk after what happened at Manchester United? Which coach will please a unique, but potentially uncomfortable champion? The World Cup will give this answer.”
Ronaldo has recently confirmed that Ferguson played a key role in his return to Old Trafford.
The Portuguese ace has been linked with a return to Serie A, with Napoli and Roma reportedly interested, but it remains to be seen if any of the two sides are open to matching his salary demands in January.