Ronaldo will return to England – says Ramon Calderon
Published:
Ballon D’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo will return to England before the end of his career, according to former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon.
Ronaldo signed a new deal with Los Blancos late last year tying him to the Bernabeu until 2018 on wages of £15m a year but Calderon claims that the lack of a bond between the 28-year-old and current president Florentino Perez means a return to the Premier League is not out of the question.
In an interview with The Sun Calderon suggested that the relationship Ronaldo enjoys with former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson means Old Trafford will remain in the attacker’s thoughts.
“I feel that one day he will return to England. In Madrid, he is pleased with the city and the fans, but I think his relationship with Florentino Perez is not as good as it was with Alex Ferguson at Manchester United,” he told the newspaper.
“Ronaldo loves father figures. With Florentino, he does not have that rapport. The relationship is bad or actually non-existent. He stays at Real despite the chairman.”
The comments will delight United fans who have seen their side drift to 40/1 to retain the Premier League crown after a stuttering start under new manager David Moyes.
Such is the Red Devils’ current predicament that the champions are odds-against at 9/4 to finish in the top four and secure Champions League football.
And it is perhaps this concern that has made United’s transfer targets – Ronaldo included – think twice about moving to the red half of Manchester.
Calderon’s comments emphasise what Ronaldo has hinted at before – with the forward claiming he was “sad” at Madrid last year – but if and when United can lure him back remain the big questions.
After picking up the Ballon D’Or trophy CR7 revealed that Rio Ferdinand had attempted to convince him to return in the summer, but with his current Madrid deal keeping him at the club until the age of 33 United would be better served looking elsewhere to shore up their uninspiring squad.
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