Ronaldo leaves Manchester United immediately. What’s next? His furious pre-World Cup interview led to the cancellation of his agreement on Tuesday. As a top prospect, the 37-year-old forward can show potential partners he can still perform for Qatar. After failing to sign with a Champions League team this summer, his future may rely on it. If he wants to play in the knockout rounds of Europe’s best club competition after the World Cup, his options are restricted.
The Champions League is reduced to 16 teams, and few can match Ronaldo’s rumoured 500,000 pounds a week wage at United. Little evidence suggests they’d sign him. Ronaldo’s conversation with Piers Morgan, in which he blasted United’s management and owners, showed he still considers himself a top player. Where will he go next?In Champions League?If Ronaldo wants to play when the competition resumes in February, he has 16 options. Who can afford him? A last fling with an elite club would be ideal. His best chance is as a short-term cure till the season ends. Karim Benzema and Sadio Mane are injured and will miss the World Cup. If any club fears being limited in the second part of the season, Ronaldo may be an alternative.In Premier League?Chelsea pondered a summer move, but nothing happened. Graham Potter already has an ageing striker in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, so Ronaldo wouldn’t fit into his long-term plans. Piers Morgan wants Ronaldo to join Arsenal, but the Premier League champion has built a young team under Mikel Arteta.Could Saudi-backed Newcastle make a major signing?Or Homecoming?Ronaldo might return to the Champions League by finishing his career at Sporting Lisbon, where he began. This alternative would require a wage cut.Saudi Arabia was Ronaldo’s lone summer suitor. A transfer there would be his most lucrative choice, but it would be a step back in his sporting aspirations. It would prevent him from extending his record as the Champions League’s all-time greatest scorer with 140 goals and allow Lionel Messi, who has 129, to overtake him.MLS could be an option?Perhaps it’s time for him to become MLS’s biggest star. He couldn’t meet his pay, and his Champions League days are ended.This would be a new adventure for a man with much more than a half-billion Instagram followers.Comment down below.
Subscribe to Updates
Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.