Cristiano Ronaldo’s future at Manchester United remains in the balance after the forward returned to Carrington for showdown talks with Old Trafford officials earlier this week.
Ronaldo missed the two-and-a-half week-long tour of Thailand and Australia but has now returned for training in Manchester, where talks with the club ended in an impasse.
The 37-year-old still wants to leave the club but United are standing firm and are not allowing him to depart after just one year into his two-year deal.
Speculation surrounding Ronaldo’s future has seen him linked with Chelsea and Atletico Madrid, with German giants Bayern Munich also suggested as a possible destination following the departure of Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona.
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Now, Bayern Munich chief Oliver Kahn has admitted the prospect of signing Ronaldo was discussed internally but it was ruled out after talks.
“We discussed this issue because otherwise we would not be doing our job properly,” Kahn told SportBild, via the Daily Mail.
“I personally consider Cristiano Ronaldo one of the greatest footballers ever on this planet. But we came to the conclusion that despite all the appreciation for Cristiano, he would not have fit in our philosophy in the current situation”
SN’s verdict…
The Ronaldo situation is turning into a bit of a circus and it’s the last thing Ten Hag needs less than two weeks before his tenure at the club officially gets underway against Brighton.
Had a replacement been lined up or if there were other out-and-out strikers at the club, it would be fair to assume that United would have co-operated with Ronaldo.
But as things stand, no striker is being courted in the market and the only internal replacement is Anthony Martial, who despite impressing in pre-season, has shown over the years that a full season of goals is unlikely.