Cristiano Ronaldo: Why Do Real Madrid Want Him So Badly?

It has now been confirmed that FIFA won't discipline Real Madrid for their pursuit of Cristiano Ronaldo, but Man Utd reporting them may well have scared them off for now.

I never thought Ronaldo would go this summer. Sir Alex Ferguson said he wouldn't, the Glazer family said he wouldn't, Ronaldo said he was happy at Old Trafford, and even Real Madrid said they wouldn't get him.

Next summer, however, I think he will go. If, that is, he carries on performing like he did last season, which is a hell of an ask.

But why do Madrid want the second best player in the world so badly?

They have talent oozing from their wide positions already. Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder have both performed better than Ronaldo in this European Championships tournament so far.

I rate Sneijder very highly. I would put him in and around the top midfielders in the world today. Ronaldo is better, but worth £100m to replace Sneijder and Robben? No way.

Well, one reason they want him is for the simple and straightforward reason that he is an exceptional talent.

Their current crop of players has shown that they can win titles for Real Madrid. But the addition of Ronaldo would make them stronger in the league (just in case Barcelona put up a strong title challenge next season) and a dominant force in Europe again.

Another reason Madrid may want to get him is because he is a big name. They have officially dropped the tag of "The Galacticos" following the departures of the likes of Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane, Roberto Carlos, and David Beckham, but they are still drawn to big name players.

Think of a big name and a club that would be interested, and Madrid is the first team that comes to mind.

This works the other way around as well, as Ronaldo would be interested in joining Madrid. While Man Utd may well be the best team in the world at the moment, Madrid are still the biggest.

If they come knocking, very few people refuse. This is due to the illustrious history of the club, from Di Stefano and Puskas to Zidane and Raul. Their Champions League pedigree may not be at its best at the moment, but their record in the competition is unparalleled.

They realise that even they have no chance of getting Lionel Messi, who I view as the best in the world, as Barca would never sell him to Madrid. However, saying that, they did let Figo go to their bitter rivals back in 2000.

However, I think the main reason is the commercial side of things. I briefly mentioned this in a previous article of mine. Ronaldo could become the next Beckham in terms of fame and commercial success off the field.

Beckham was such a success that within two days of his £23-million transfer Madrid had got that back through shirt sales in Asia alone.

When he left they had to take out a loan to help with the day-to-day running of the club due to the loss of the huge profit they gained through him being there.

Whether Ronaldo can be quite as big as that I don't know, but he is probably the biggest name in football at the moment, and so would be more of a business investment for Madrid—a plug to fill the void left by Beckham, much like he was at Old Trafford.

But I have a feeling we will be seeing Ronaldo in a Real Madrid shirt in the future.

Maybe not this year, perhaps not even next, but as many clubs will confess, Real Madrid have a habit of getting their man.