Cristiano Ronaldo’s future at Manchester United remains far from clear, with the player still hoping to secure a move away from Old Trafford before the transfer deadline, sources have told 90min.
Ronaldo made it known to United earlier in the summer that he wanted to leave, and he has been unrelenting in that desire even following Erik ten Hag’s arrival as manager.
The Dutchman had made it clear to Ronaldo that he did not want him to leave, but their relationship has become strained and the Portuguese legend has been benched for much of the season to date. Indeed, Ronaldo was only a late second half substitute during United’s 1-0 win at Southampton on Saturday.
Ten Hag has since told United’s hierarchy that he is willing to let Ronaldo leave, despite his public statements of desire to keep the 37-year-old, and his agent Jorge Mendes is working hard to find him options ahead of the deadline.
Talks have taken place with clubs all over Europe, with the likes of Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain all exploring the possibility of agreeing a deal over the summer. More recently, both Napoli and Sporting CP have done the same.
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Serie A giants Napoli are the latest team to express an interest and it has been claimed elsewhere that Victor Osimhen could be involved in a possible swap deal of sorts. However, sources have told 90min that it is far from certain that Ronaldo would be keen on a move to Naples.
While his former club Sporting would struggle to compete with most clubs in the transfer market, as 90min revealed, there are options for them to try and take him back to Lisbon.
90min also understands that Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly is continuing to keep abreast of Ronaldo’s situation and a move to Stamford Bridge remains a possibility, though Barcelona’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang remains the Blues’ first choice target.
As it stands United have not agreed terms with any club. And although Ronaldo remains hopeful a deal will be agreed with a club that is playing Champions League football, any club wanting him will have to move swiftly to get a deal done before the deadline.