Ronaldo to Sporting '99% done' - How Man Utd reacted to the rumour
Karan Tejwani
- 26 Aug 2022 09:40 BST
- 3 min read
On Thursday afternoon, it was reported that Cristiano Ronaldo was set for a return to Sporting, his boyhood club, as he looks to leave Manchester United.
Caught Offside reported that the deal to take Ronaldo back to Portugal was “99 percent done” and that the Sporting squad had been preparing for Ronaldo’s arrival for weeks.
Additionally, they added that the club had prepared a presentation for the return of Ronaldo and that agent Jorge Mendes had worked extensively to get the deal done.
However, it seems as though that deal won’t be happening and that Ronaldo is set to continue at Manchester United, unless there’s a sensational late offer for him.
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Immediately after the rumour was shared, both club and player seemingly cooled down any speculation, dashing any hopes of a return to Ronaldo’s home club in this transfer window.
Ronaldo took to Instagram to share his first post in two weeks – a picture of him training and the caption “Keep working and focused” indicating his desire to win his place back at Manchester United.
Manchester United officials also cooled down any speculation as sources close to the first-team denied any offers from Sporting.
Sporting have been linked with a return for Ronaldo all summer, but it’s become clear that they won’t be able to afford the operation as the player’s wages are too high for them.
Keep working and focused 🙏🏽💪🏽 pic.twitter.com/W03sh6ggYE
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) August 25, 2022
Additionally, manager Ruben Amorim reportedly doesn’t feel Ronaldo is the right tactical fit for his side as he aims to regain the Portuguese league title this season.
Other than Sporting, others such as Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain have been linked, but due to age, tactical fit and high costs, no solid offers have come in for the 37-year-old.
Ronaldo has been adamant on leaving all summer, and was even dropped from the team to face Liverpool by manager Erik ten Hag, which worked out as Manchester United beat their old rivals 2-1.
