Cristiano Ronaldo will plan to leave Manchester United and sign for a new club after returning from the Qatar World Cup – as Bayern Munich confirmed they opted against a move for the striker.
Ronaldo, 37, has been intent on departing United for the past four months after his high-profile return from Juventus last year did not go to plan. Despite netting 24 goals across all competitions last season, United's collective form nosedived, and they finished a distant sixth in the Premier League.
The Portuguese superstar was left "upset" at seeing his pay slashed at Man United after each member of the squad was hit with a 25 per cent cut to their weekly wage due to the club's failure to qualify for the Champions League. Yet Ronaldo was unable to secure an exit, with no side willing to meet his wage demands and guarantee him regular football.
Ronaldo’s list of potential suitors appears to be decreasing with Bayern CEO Kahn this week confirming that they talked about signing the player but decided against a move, with German rivals Borussia Dortmund adapting a similar position.
Kahn explained: "We talked briefly about Cristiano at Bayern and probably also at Dortmund. We also see the big picture in the Bundesliga and an important factor in drawing attention to the league is of course superstars like him. He is one of the greatest of the last decade, but we quickly wrote him off."
A detailed report in The Times has now explained how Ronaldo will re-double his efforts to leave Old Trafford once the World Cup concludes in Qatar. The striker is focusing on his preparation for the tournament now but will seek to find a new club when the tournament comes to a conclusion.
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For Ronaldo, that could be as late as 18 December should Portugal go all the way to the final in Doha. However, it appears that the former Real Madrid striker has identified the January transfer window as a potential escape route from Old Trafford – with Erik ten Hag privately admitting that he would prefer for the player to be moved on, as he is not buying into his methods.
United football director John Murtough poured cold water on the idea that there will be first-team movements in or out of the club this winter, but that position could change should they be able to offload their highest-earning player – who has fallen out of favour under Ten Hag. Ronaldo is said by the latest report to believe that United’s coaching sessions are underwhelming as his relationship with the boss appears to have broken down.
Ronaldo has been excluded from each of the last five Premier League starting line-ups by the Dutch boss and the striker was forced to watch the entirety of United's chastening 6-3 derby defeat against Manchester City from the bench. With Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial establishing themselves ahead of Ronaldo in the pecking order, a January move may be in the pipeline.
