Real Madrid Transfer News: Agent Cites 'Crazy Money' Will Lure Cristiano Ronaldo

The notion of Cristiano Ronaldo returning to Old Trafford isn't anything new, but latest speculation may have more veracity to it than usual, with one of Europe's top agents claiming "crazy money" can push the move through.

Francois Gallardo is quoted in giving his assessment of the potential deal by Metro's Jamie Sanderson, claiming that while content with Real Madrid, Ronaldo's head can be turned:

"Currently he is happy at Real Madrid, but his entourage will try to change his mind. He is preparing his departure for next summer, he has said. Offers will be made by other clubs and these teams can offer crazy money to sign him."

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"Crazy money" is a term Manchester United aren't altogether unfamiliar with these days either, having broken the £150 million barrier in spending this summer, as confirmed by The Times (h/t BBC's Nick Sutton) upon Radamel Falcao's deadline-day signing:

That £6 million season-long loan can be made permanent for a further fee of £46 million next summer, writes The Telegraph's Mark Ogden, another substantial figure on the back of Angel Di Maria's £59.7 million move.

Paying such meteoric numbers for Ronaldo would perhaps be more acceptable given that his success would be more assured, considering his past success as a Manchester United hero.

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The prospect is helped on by the fact that Ronaldo also shares super-agent Jorge Mendes as his representative alongside Di Maria and Falcao, with links between him and the Red Devils clearly as strong as ever.

Goal.com's Peter Staunton notes that the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson hasn't deterred Mendes from doing business with United, as it would appear:

It's often the case that money is spent in its largest sums when a club is in a state of crisis, criteria that United could be described as falling under at present.

Their failure to qualify for European football last season was a disaster, and under Louis van Gaal the English giants will seek to correct that absence this term and return to the Champions League stage.

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It could be a pivotal decider in whether United could even land Rinaldo. He isn't likely to sacrifice that competition for a whole year, instead choosing to bide his time for a return.

That being said, as reported earlier in the week, Ronaldo's desire for a return to the club that truly put him on the elite stage could be enough to overcome even those obstacles:

For now, it's little more than a pipe dream. A story of hope and want that emerges annually and is disproven on a basis just as frequent. 

Except with money playing as significant a role in the market as ever, the stars may finally be aligning where United can warrant the expenditure and their target may warrant the exit.