Cristiano Ronaldo’s chance of leaving Man United this summer is becoming more difficult as the day goes by after Atletico Madrid officially ruled themselves out of a move for the five times Ballon d’Or winner.
The Portuguese star player finally came back to Manchester United camp on Tuesday, July 26, 2022, after missing the club’s pre-season tour in Thailand and Australia because of a family issue.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s return caused a lot of buzz in the media because he had already informed the Man United board that he wants to leave the club this summer.
It was reported that he had a showdown talk with Man United’s new head coach Erik ten Hag – but the details of the meeting are yet to be revealed.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes is also believed to be searching for his next club and has reached out to big teams like Barcelona, Chelsea, Bayern Munich, and Paris Saint-Germain. However, none of these teams have accepted to sign the 37-year-old Portuguese star because of Ronaldo’s high salary and style of play. His options decreased again after Atletico Madrid’s president Enrique Cerezo said his club could not afford the striker.
Speaking during an interview with Spanish radio, Cerezo said: ‘I don’t know who invented this story about Cristiano Ronaldo to Atletico Madrid. It’s not true. It’s practically impossible for him to come to Atletico Madrid.’
Manchester United are still not ready to release their legend because he still has one year left on his contract with the club.
🚨🎙| Enrique Cerezo (club president):
— Atletico Universe (@atletiuniverse) July 26, 2022
“I don’t know who invented the story of Cristiano Ronaldo, but it’s practically impossible for him to come to Atlético de Madrid.”
However, the star player wants to continue playing in the UEFA Champions League, and staying with Man United means he’ll participate in the UEFA Europa League next season.
Although he didn’t travel with the team for this summer pre-season tour, he was part of the tour debrief on Tuesday.
According to reports, Cristiano Ronaldo has recently promised to remain professional even as he wants to depart this summer.
Ronaldo and new signings Christian Eriksen and Lisandro Martinez were the first team players who missed the tour but joined others at Carrington on Tuesday.
While at Carrington, the 37-year-old had a meeting with the man who first brought him to Man United in 2003, Sir Alex Ferguson. The former Man United head coach was in the club restaurant with former captain Bryan Robson ahead of a meeting at 11.30 am.
Sir Alex Ferguson and Bryan Robson reportedly came to Carrington to have lunch with Man United chief executive officer Richard Arnold and former chief executive officer David Gill.
Also, Man United CEO is expected to have a meeting with Jorge Mendes to discuss Cristiano Ronaldo’s next move.
On the other hand, Erik ten Hag is not yet pleased with the number of games his team has played as he has accepted to face Wrexham in a behind-closed-doors friendly on Wednesday but Ronaldo is unlikely to participate.
