Atletico Madrid have reportedly stepped up their efforts to sign Cristiano Ronaldo as they have placed Antoine Griezmann on the transfer market.
This has been reported by The Times, in a report written by Duncan Castles, a journalist renowned for having close contacts with Jorge Mendes.
It is stated that Ronaldo has been impressed by Diego Simeone’s willingness to work with him, despite years of rivalry during his time at Real Madrid.
Even though Ronaldo already has Ten Hag’s blessing, with the new United manager stressing that he wants to work with him in the future, it sounds like the Portuguese superstar is still pushing for a move this summer.
Castles writes: “The Sunday Times understands that Ronaldo has been receptive to the idea of returning to a city in which he established a host of goalscoring records across his nine seasons at Real Madrid. In addition to Atletico providing a platform to compete in the Champions League for a 20th consecutive campaign and for La Liga’s national title, the 37-year-old has been impressed by the head coach Diego Simeone’s eagerness to work with him.”
Atletico intensify pursuit of Cristiano Ronaldo by offering Antoine Griezmann to potential suitors.https://t.co/PMdb2U54rC pic.twitter.com/o8Q054JOOZ
— Duncan Castles (@DuncanCastles) July 23, 2022
Ronaldo has yet to report for United training this summer, but that hasn’t stopped him posting Instagram pictures from the gym to show his fans that he’s keeping in shape ahead of the new season.
Atletico’s plan might not go as planned
Griezmann has been offered to several potential suitors, including Paris Saint-Germain, but the Ligue 1 giants are not interested in the player.
It’s not like PSG are going to sign an underperforming player like Griezmann when they’ve already got Neymar in their squad.
The whole situation gets tricky when you add in the fact Grezimann is actually on loan at Atletico from Barcelona. His loan spell ends next year, but Atletico have a £40m buyout obligation.
It sounds like they want to avoid paying that £40m just one year after reaching an agreement with Barca.
