Manchester City are reportedly prepared to make an offer for Cristiano Ronaldo, who is closing in on an exit from Juventus.
According to Gianluca Di Marzio, Manchester City have been given a boost in pursuit of Cristiano Ronaldo. It appears the Portuguese international’s departure agreement with Juventus has been settled, with the former Manchester United ace now only having one option – a move to the Etihad.
Juventus are holding out for a fee of €25 million, with Manchester City now prepared to make an offer after initial hesitation. Ronaldo’s super-agent Jorge Mendes is already in Turin to finalise the transfer, putting the final touches in his likely return to the Premier League.
Manchester City were earlier linked with a switch for Lionel Messi before the Argentine eventually ended up joining Paris Saint-Germain. But it appears Ronaldo is a far more affordable option despite the fact that they have to pay a transfer fee to Juventus in order to facilitate the move.
The Citizens’ potential acquisition of the Manchester United icon could potentially solve their goalscoring issues, at least for the short term. They have indeed lacked the presence of a reliable centre-forward following the departure of Sergio Aguero earlier in the summer, with very few around the club favouring Gabriel Jesus.
Cristiano Ronaldo has left Juventus training center after 40 minutes to say goodbye to his teammates. He only wants to leave the club in the next hours. ??? #Ronaldo
NO training today. Ronaldo is waiting for Mendes to bring the official bid as it’s still verbal with Man City.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 27, 2021
But with Ronaldo and his massive pedigree at the highest level of football, Manchester City could find themselves boasting the strongest attacking setup in the Premier League.
The English champions had earlier signed Jack Grealish for a British record fee, while Pep Guardiola also boasts the services of Raheem Sterling, Phil Foden and Kevin De Bruyne, making Manchester City instant favourites to not only retain the league title but also win the UEFA Champions League.
Ronaldo has not won the Champions League since leaving Real Madrid in 2018. However, the Portuguese international will have a far better chance of reclaiming the coveted trophy once again with Manchester City, although the English giants still have a business to do once they are done with the acquisition of the former Manchester United forward.
Gabriel Jesus, for one, is being courted as the number one replacement option for Juventus while AC Milan are reportedly closing in on Bernardo Silva. Manchester City will be under pressure to offload at least one of their star players, should Ronaldo arrive at the Etihad, so it will be interesting to see how they go about their business in the remaining days of the transfer window.
It will be very very interesting