All the twists, all of the turns...yet have we really had time to sum up the saga in general? It's time to unravel all of the push and pull factors, the whole sense of the ongoing Cristiano Ronaldo saga. Will he stay at Manchester United or go to Real Madrid? As soon as I tie up all of the ends, we can draw up a sizable conclusion.
First off, let's get the footballing side of it out of the way. If it were for pure footballing reasons, he would stay. The fact is he could win a lot more at Unied than he could at Real.
He could win up to five trophies at United every season, the Premiership, the League Cup, the FA Cup, the Champions League and the Community Shield. In fact, they have a great chance of doing it this season. At Real, it could only be three or four.
But, he could put so much transfer budget in the kitty for United if he did go off to Madrid. The amount he could go for, around £70 million, could give United plentiful funds, about £100 million from existing funds, to sign a replacement plus a striker and maybe one or two others if they think they needed it.
Then let's get to the personal reasons. Ronaldo's been all over the place with whether he would go to Real or stay at United. Last year he signed a new five-year deal with United, professing his loyalty to stay until 2012.
But in the last few months he has declared that it would be his dream to play for Real Madrid.
Once he said: "Where I will be next season...only God knows."
With mixed statements such as these, it's impossible to know where he'll end up.
Various luminaries of football have expressed their opinions. People like David Beckham, Pele, Arsene Wenger, and Rio Ferdinand have told Ronaldo that he'd do best if he stays at United. Others like Fabio Cannavaro, Zinedine Zidane, and even Sepp Blatter, have told Ronaldo he should move to Real.
But in other terms, Real have been totally unsporting about this saga. Courting Ronaldo in public has been totally pathetic, making sure to unsettle the player so it would be easier to nab him.
United were right to report them to UEFA because it was out of proportion. The fact that Real avoided punishment still puzzles me.
But then there's the player himself. If Ronaldo wanted to leave, then it'd be wrong of United to keep him against his will. It'd mean he wouldn't be able to give his best because he would not be playing at the club he wants. It'd be sheer cruelty.
So, all factors here and examined, should he stay or should he go?
Well, it's still pretty blurry in terms of the eventual outcome. I for one cannot reach a certain conclusion about it. Let's hope that this saga does not leave a bigger stain as it already has done on World football.
14 comments Last one added 11 months ago — Leave a Comment
tarik mekic 11 months ago
um okayy beckham first of all said he should go second he has a bigger chance winning in real then man u and man u cant report real they didnt do anything wrong showing interest in a player is not wrong and the president of fifa supports his move so thats out of the picture and finally professional football is a job and if someone is going to offer you more pay to do the same thing you have the right to take it
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Anthony Sanchez 11 months ago
Beckham didn't say that.
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John Ingram 11 months ago
This player should no longer be written about until there is a signature at Madrid or the transfer deadline passes and he stays at Man Utd.
For the final word on Ronaldo I'd revert to this for now.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/37265-cristiano-ronaldo-and-sepp-blatters-looney-tunes-duet
John
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Luckey Tooriez 11 months ago
You cant blame real if ronaldo wants to leave... So i personally think ronaldo should leave and prove himself in spanish style football which i think he will struggle cos he took 2 seasons to adapt in english style of football... So leave ronaldo... Man utd dont need you...
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Sheikh Zakaria 11 months ago
Both the parties should share the blame for the development of such a petulant saga..but i don't get one thing..
Real has got a plethora of players in all positions..let it be the striking position, mdifield or the defence..
So, why the hell are they up against the odds to sign and simply waste their money behind such a player, without him, i am sue real can bring home more silverwares..
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Zaakir Hoosen 11 months ago
i think its quite clear since Alex Ferguson made a statement in the press, when he arrived in South Africa, saying that after he had spoken to Ronaldo, it now definite that Ronaldo will stay at United and won't be leaving in the near future....or until his contract ends...so i dont think there is any need for speculation or conclusions...because Ferguson wont make a comment like that without knowing for sure....
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illya mclellan 11 months ago
has everyone forgotten he has already won ALL OF THE MAJOR HONOURS in england? why wouldnt you go to la liga and get yourself some more medals. united are not used to this, i think norman whiteside did something similar a few years back when he left and they didnt expect him to. maybe im wrong i cant quite remember. Norman Whiteside is a #$%^& legend.
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Mark Syrett 11 months ago
Getting bored now, can he just go or stay. make up his mind and stop messing around Real Madrid, Man Utd, Fifa, Portugal, his family, the fans............sorry but I could go on.
He thinks he's bigger than United, probably bigger than Madrid too. So I reckon he'll end up like Veron. Or Rivaldo. Have one or 2 great seasons. Do a big move. then well nothing, end of career. End up playing again for Sporting lisbon, and be well and truly forgotten.
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Gonzalo 11 months ago
"He could win more at United than he could at Real" - The League Cup? The Community Shield? Let's face it, there's only three major trophies in contention every season and they apply to pretty much all major European leagues - League, Cup and Champions League. I'm not going to get into the relative merits of the Premiership versus the Spanish League, and I'll concede that the FA Cup is far more prestigious than the Copa del Rey, but those "purely footballing reasons" are not as clear cut as you make them. There are plenty of footballing challeneges to be had away from the English Premiership, stop being so parochial.
http://allinwhite.blogspot.com
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Edward Quinn 11 months ago
parochial? that's a new word! Thanks for the advice, I was trying to just draw it up from what I knew
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Gonzalo 11 months ago
My take on this is that there's been a whole lot of fuss over what effectively happens time and time again throughout World football (Manchester United have been accused of doing it to other clubs) - it's just the financial amounts involved are particularly astronomical. I would argue that there are no real victims, so why all the noise?
Cristiano Ronaldo: Without his collusion none of this would be happening. If he were truly the person worthy of adulation from the ManU faithful he would have made clear his commitment to that club months ago. He is angling for what he wants and will (arguably) get what he deserves.
Manchester United: If they sell, they will probably receive an insane amount of money for a player potentially at the peak of his financial worth (I’m not saying it’s downhill for Ronaldo from here, just that he had an exceptional season that is unlikely to be repeated year in, year out). I’m sure Ferguson can put that money to very good use.
Robinho: This so-called injured party is merely angling (or at least his agent is) for a contract renewal / salary increase from Real or a better deal elsewhere - as is his right. There’s no way Real will keep him against his will, as they well know he will just end up being inconsistent and worth a lot less at the end of the coming season.
Real Madrid: They get one of the top talents in football, plus a hugely marketable asset. They may pay for it further down the line unless they manage it better than they did with the other galacticos, but the issue is with the business model, rather than this particular transfer.
So, there are not really any innocent parties here. Except perhaps the fans. But then again, heroes come and go, and it is partly the public’s hunger for news over the summer period that drives the media to create or make up stories which sometimes end up being true just by sheer inertia. So, very little sympathy from me there…
If Cristiano ends up staying at Manchester, I wonder how damaged both he and the club will be by the whole saga.
For an article I wrote on this back in May, check out http://allinwhite.blogspot.com/2008/05/cristiano-crusade.html
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Ismail Uddin 11 months ago
In reference to your point about Man Utd stopping Ronaldo form going as wrong, i believe you are clearly mistaken. He under all eventualities has signed a contract. He has to uphold that contract. Ronaldo has even said that it is not up to him. It is Man Utds decision and no one elses!
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Dakota Rubin 11 months ago
The whole problem with the saga is US.
Simple as that. I am being a hypocrite when I say this but whatever. It is the medias fault—that includes all of us. We are where the questions and controversy come from.
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Chris Kirk 11 months ago
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