Cristiano Ronaldo has clarified that his proposed move to Atletico Madrid is based purely on playing in the Champions League, rather than how much he will be earning, according to reports in Spain.
The Portugal international has told the Red Devils that he is keen to leave this summer, prompting mass speculation over where he could end up. After finishing sixth in the Premier League with their lowest-ever points tally last season, United will be plying their trade in the Europa League in the upcoming campaign.
Ronaldo has no interest in dropping into that competition as he targets more continental glory and aims to extend his lead over Lionel Messi at the top of the Champions League scoring charts. The 37-year-old reckons he has around four years at the peak of his powers left in the tank and does not want to waste what little time he has left in the Europa League.
According to COPE, Ronaldo's potential move to Atletico was discussed in a meeting between super-agent Jorge Mendes and the club's CEO, Miguel Angel Gil Marin, which took place at the start of July. Mendes stressed to the Atletico official that his client would be ready to join Diego Simeone's side for a 'modest amount'.
Ronaldo does not want to focus on the financial package, as his priority is the sporting project, which allows him to compete in the Champions League and at the highest level for at least one more season. The report states that the same package was also offered to Barcelona before they completed the signing of 33-year-old Robert Lewandowski from Bayern Munich for a fee in the region of £38.3million, with £4.2m to be paid in add-ons.
However, there is one major issue with Ronaldo's switch to Atletico. They need to raise €40m (£34.1m) first to register new players and also must make room in attack before contemplating signing the ex-Real Madrid man.
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Alvaro Morata, who has spent the last two seasons on loan at Juventus, has been linked with a return to the Old Lady, while Joao Felix and Antoine Griezmann continue to tipped with a move away from the club. If there are a series of exits at Atletico in the coming weeks, then a potential deal may be analysed to see how Ronaldo would fit into Simeone's plans ahead of the 2022/23 season.
Ronaldo scored 24 goals in 38 matches across all competitions last season - including 18 in the Premier League as he finished as the third highest scorer behind Mohamed Salah and Son Heung-min (23 apiece). Erik ten Hag is still keen to keep the forward this summer, however, and insists that he is firmly part of United's squad.
Discussing Ronaldo, the Red Devils manager said: "The same status as last week in Bangkok: no change. I cannot tell you [when he will be back in training]. No change in the issue. He is training. I think we all know Ronaldo is a top professional and he will be fit. That is the last concern I have."
