Revealed: The truth behind Chelsea's Cristiano Ronaldo interest
Ben Jacobs
- Updated: 14 Jul 2022 14:29 BST
- 3 min read
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Chelsea were never seriously in the running to sign Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United because manager Thomas Tuchel never wanted the player, CBS reporter Ben Jacobs writes for FootballTransfers.
My understanding is that Thomas Tuchel has never been keen, even though Chelsea’s style would arguably suit Ronaldo’s style more than Manchester United’s because they’re more intricate in and around the box.
The new ownership group have come in from Clearlake/Boehly and they are intrigued by Ronaldo. But they’ve said that Thomas Tuchel and Emma Hayes will get final say on all players on the men and the women’s side. There’s no indication that Tuchel wants Ronaldo.
That plus Manchester United might be more bullish on their not-for-sale stance if it’s to a Premier League rival. So I actually don’t think Chelsea were ever likely to sign him.
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Ronaldo’s options running out
If he wants Champions League football, he has to hope Bayern revisit their interest if and when Robert Lewandowski gets his move to Barcelona – and I still think that’s what Ronaldo’s hoping for. Napoli are interested, but whether they can get a deal done remains to be seen. And there are really not too many others.
I don’t see a move to Real Madrid, I don’t see a move to Barcelona.
If he really wants to contend for the Champions League, he’s going to have to compromise. And if he doesn’t get Champions League football, what’s the point in leaving Manchester United? There are links with Roma. Why go back under Mourinho and play Europa League football? That doesn’t make a lot of sense.
He’s short of options in terms of who can afford him and where the genuine interest lies. So don’t rule out the prospect of him staying at Manchester United, even though his desire is clearly to leave.
Even though Man Utd will let him leave for the right offer, he still has to find that offer.
Agent Jorge Mendes has been putting feelers out since April but he still doesn’t have a club to go to. That unfortunately is the reality of being a 37-year-old.
The truth behind Boehly’s Mendes meeting
Manchester United were really angry when they learned of the meeting between Mendes and Boehly, and very frustrated that the Chelsea links were made public. That meeting was about a variety of targets and as a kind of introduction to Mendes, so you can’t only read Ronaldo into that.
