Ronaldo to Chelsea, Barca, Bayern, Napoli? Only one club makes sense
Carlo Garganese
- 5 Jul 2022 09:00 BST
- 4 min read
As he has done his entire career, Cristiano Ronaldo has to always be the centre of attention.
Even during a transfer window where we have seen a strong of blockbuster transfers – Erling Haaland, Darwin Nunez, Aurelien Tchouameni to name just a few – it is Ronaldo who has become the biggest story of the summer.
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News broke at the weekend that Ronaldo plans to quit Manchester United this summer, citing their lack of Champions League football, lack of ambition and their inability to challenge for major honours next season.
Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes has been busy over the past few weeks speaking to prospective buyers and offering his client around.
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What we know so far is that Ronaldo has been offered to – or at the very least, there have been conversations about him joining – Chelsea, Bayern Munich, PSG, Barcelona, Napoli, Roma and Sporting Lisbon.
So let’s run through each of these clubs and look at whether any of them are a realistic destination for him.
Chelsea look like the favourites to sign Ronaldo for a number of reasons. They can afford Ronaldo’s astronomical €30 million per season net wages and they can offer Champions League football and a competitive team. But most importantly, their new American owner Todd Boehly has held positive talks with Mendes and appears to be keen on signing Ronaldo to make a big commercial statement. They also need a striker following the exit of Romelu Lukaku. The one question is: will Man Utd sell to a domestic rival?
Bayern Munich also need a new number nine as Robert Lewandowski is almost certain to leave for Barcelona. But Bayern will be going against their entire history and tradition by signing a 37-year-old on such a massive salary. This is not the kind of deal Bayern generally make. It is also questionable he suits manager Julian Nagelsmann’s high-octane style of playing.
PSG have long been linked with Ronaldo but if we are to accept Nasser Al-Khelaifi’s statements recently that the “bling-bling era is over” then this transfer does not happen. Fitting in Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in the same team would be tactically suicidal, while PSG are also in advanced talks to sign Gianluca Scamacca to be their new number nine.
It emerged on Monday evening that Jorge Mendes has been in talks with Barcelona over a shock move to Camp Nou. This transfer makes no sense on any level. Lewandowski is set to join Barca, so where is Ronaldo going to play in Xavi’s 4-3-3? Secondly, a club that is €1.3 billion in debt and are selling up to 25 per cent of their tv rights to a third party just to fund their summer transfer market cannot justify paying such huge wages for a player edging towards 40. Also Ronaldo is a Madrid legend, would he burn all those bridges signing for Barca?
There have been multiple reports that Napoli are interested in signing Ronaldo but this also makes no sense. Napoli not only can’t afford Ronaldo, but their president Aurelio De Laurentiis is notorious for offering extremely low salaries for any players over the age of 30. This is the reason why Lorenzo Insigne and Dries Mertens left and Kalidou Koulibaly may follow them – three Napoli legends. He won’t change his stance for Ronaldo, although as a movie producer he may bask on the publicity being linked to Cristiano may bring for a while. Furthermore, Luciano Spalletti plays a 4-2-3-1 and Napoli already have one of the two best strikers in the league in Victor Osimhen.
Ronaldo was also offered to Roma, who are of course coached by long-time Mendes-associate Jose Mourinho. But Mourinho aside, it is hard to see this transfer happening for the simple reason that Roma are not in the Champions League. Ronaldo is obsessed with extending and breaking records in the Champions League.
Finally, a return to his first club Sporting Lisbon has been mentioned but, while he could play there again before he retires, Ronaldo wants to continue playing in a major league for a club who can challenge the best in the Champions League.
So, all in all, only Chelsea looks like a realistic destination for Ronaldo right now. But this is Cristiano, and he has surprised in the transfer market with both of his last two moves. So, never say never!
