Cristiano Ronaldo ’s car has been spotted at the stadium of Sporting CP amid claims he will re-join his former club on a loan deal from Manchester United.
Ronaldo is determined to depart Old Trafford this summer and he has not reported to the club's pre-season tour of Asia due to 'family reasons'. A potential move to Bayern Munich was ruled out by the German giants this weekend despite suggestions he could replace Robert Lewandowski, whose move to Barcelona was confirmed on Saturday.
The Portuguese superstar’s options have narrowed down after Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel came out against the idea – making any move to Stamford Bridge extremely unlikely – after new Blues owner Todd Boehly considered launching an extraordinary bid to sign the striker.
Ronaldo was left "upset" at seeing his pay slashed at United after each member of the squad was hit with a 25 per cent cut to their weekly wage – with the 37-year-old, who is the club’s highest earner, seeing the greatest impact to his pay packet. That was due to the club’s failure to qualify for the Champions League, which Ronaldo is desperate to continue participating in.
Former club Sporting offer the ideal opportunity for him to do so, having reached the Round of 16 of last year’s competition and eyeing another knockout qualification this season. On Sunday, Portuguese TV station Sport TV reported the Lisbon-based club were negotiating to sign the striker on a loan deal.
It came on the same day that Ronaldo’s car was pictured in the car park of Sporting’s Jose Alvalade stadium in the Portuguese capital, in a parking spot reserved for the club’s playing staff. It is unclear what the purpose of the visit was, but it has sparked speculation that a return to the club Ronaldo left in 2003 could be on the cards.
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A year ago, Ronaldo’s mother Dolores Aveiro vowed to speak to her son over a potential move back to Sporting from Juventus prior to his eventual return to Old Trafford. Reports that Sporting had made initial contact over a sensational move for Ronaldo first began to circulate last month.
Ronaldo enjoyed just one full season as a Sporting player, in the 2002-03 campaign, with the Lisbon club suffering a long title drought while he won trophy after trophy at United, Real Madrid and Juventus. Last year, Sporting won their first Portuguese league title since 2002 and finished second last season, ranking ahead of fierce city rivals Benfica.
Sporting CP sporting director Hugo Viana has recently told Sky Sports of a possible return of Ronaldo: "I think not now - I don't think it is possible, but you never know. He can decide where he goes, but you never know the future. I don't want to talk about that, but he has another year on his contract so whatever he decides, let's see."
