Cristiano Ronaldo Leaving Real Madrid? Two Possible Destinations for Where He Plays Next
By Vik Chokshi
Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly told teammates he was leaving Real Madrid before last week’s Champions League final.
According to Jose Felix Diaz of Marca, CR7 had made it clear to his teammates he is ready to move on:
"The post-Champions League final comments from Cristiano Ronaldo surprised many Real Madrid fans, including club president Florentino Perez, but the forward’s teammates already knew of his desire to leave. In the weeks building up to the final in Kiev, he’d let his colleagues know of his wish to move on to pastures new. They weren’t, therefore, surprised by what he had to say, just that he choose to hint at an exit at that particular moment."
These are the comments that his teammates are referring to, courtesy of beIN Sports:
"“In the next few days, I’ll give an answer to the fans. It was beautiful to be at Real Madrid. The future of any Madrid player is not important; we have just made history.”"
“Was” is the keyword there. So, if Ronaldo does leave, where would he go? Obviously every team in the world would want him, but let’s take a look at two realistic destinations.
Rumor has it, PSG have reportedly told Real Madrid they want to sign Ronaldo this summer.
According to Manu Sainz of AS, PSG are willing to pay 150 million euros to sign Ronaldo (his release clause is 1 billion euros), and they would pay him a net salary of 45 million euros.
PSG are one of the few teams that can afford the move financially, and pairing Ronaldo up with Neymar would be deadly.
Ronaldo going back to his old team makes sense. He finished his six-year run there as one of the most celebrated players in Premier League history. He led the club to 3 successive Premier League titles, an FA Cup, a FIFA Club World Cup and a UEFA Champions League.
Financially they have the money to afford the transfer fee, and the fans love him and would die to watch him play again at Old Trafford.
Don’t count out Real Madrid though, thanks to that billion-dollar transfer fee. But, Ronaldo is coming up to the twilight of his career, so selling him now might be the smart move for the club’s future. Either way, this should be a crazy off-season for the best player in the world, as there are no signs of him slowing down.