There was talk at Bayern, even at BVB it was an issue, but in the end Cristiano Ronaldo stayed with Manchester United despite all the intentions to change. It has now been revealed that the Portuguese superstar recently turned down an insane offer that would have netted him nearly a quarter of a billion euros.
It hasn’t been an easy transfer summer for Cristiano Ronaldo. The 37-year-old would have loved to have played in the Champions League for the 20th consecutive season in the late autumn of his career. Because his current club – Manchester United – did not offer him this option, the attacker allegedly tried numerous clubs before the change window closed, but found neither FC Bayern, Borussia Dortmund nor other top international clubs in the premier class are represented, a new home.
Instead of the Champions League, it is now the Europa League for CR7. The Portuguese national player is no longer playing at the highest European level, but is still much more ambitious than in those leagues where there is hardly anything at stake in sporting terms, but insane salaries are paid for it. Like in Saudi Arabia for example. That’s where Ronaldo is said to have received a mega offer.
Like the Portuguese offshoot of “CNN” reported, the 37-year-old recently rejected an offer from Al Hilal from the Saudi Professional League. This would have guaranteed him a salary of a whopping 242 million euros for a two-year contract period. That’s around 2.3 million euros a week !
League competitor Al-Nassr is said to have made a similar offer, for which there are no exact details. CR7 apparently knocked out both.
League boss would like Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia
Accordingly, Ronaldo wants to continue to be active in top European football in the Premier League and Europa League, especially with a view to the World Cup in Qatar at the end of the year. The 37-year-old’s contract with United runs until the summer of 2023, and theoretically he would have the option to extend it by another year. But it doesn’t look like that at the moment.
Rather, CR7 could leave the Red Devils in the winter after the World Cup, his fifth he is a part of. It is unclear whether a transfer to Saudi Arabia is an option at this point.
Yasser Al-Misehal, the chairman of the Saudi Football Association, would welcome a transfer from Ronaldo. “Having a player like him in the league would be great,” he told The Athletic, adding: “I’m sure it would be a very expensive deal but we have clubs that increased their revenue in recent years. We’ve seen some great players who have played in the Premier League come to Saudi Arabia.”
The transfer window in Saudi Arabia is still open for four days. Until 17.9. Ronaldo would still have time to change his mind, if Al-Hilal’s mega offer is still valid.