Cristiano Ronaldo, the Al Nassr superstar, has not dismissed the possibility of returning to his former club, Real Madrid as he turns 40 today on February 5th.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner recently reflected on his exit from the Spanish giants in 2018, revealing that he left the door open for a potential comeback to the Santiago Bernabeu, possibly to receive a tribute from the club and its fans.
“One day maybe. I don’t rule it [a return] out. I left a legacy there, a nice mark there. Maybe at the end of my career, we can do something cool, with 80,000 people,” Ronaldo said in an interview with El Chiringuito, as reported by MARCA.
Ronaldo shocked the football world when he announced his departure from Real Madrid in 2018 to join Juventus. Reflecting on his decision, the Portuguese legend explained that he felt the need for a new challenge after achieving everything possible with Los Blancos. “I wanted a different stage, my stage was closed. I wanted a different motivation. It didn’t wear me out, it was something I told the president, he agreed that I could leave,” Ronaldo shared.
Discussing the contract negotiations leading to his exit, Ronaldo opened up about his strained interactions with club president Florentino Perez. “We were in a negotiation phase and he didn’t behave so well with me, I understand because he always does it like that and I couldn’t go back, because I gave my word to Juve and the president wanted to go back,” he explained. Despite this, Ronaldo clarified that there’s no bad blood between them. “But I appreciate Florentino very much, he is a serious person, who treated me well and we won many things together,” he added.
During his illustrious stint at Real Madrid, Ronaldo cemented his status as one of the club’s all-time greats, joining the ranks of legends like Santiago Bernabeu, Hugo Sanchez, Raul, and Emilio Butragueno. He won two La Liga titles and lifted the Champions League trophy four times, finishing as the club’s all-time top scorer with an astonishing 450 goals.
Recently, he netted a brilliant brace in Al Nassr’s AFC Champions League clash against Al Wasl, helping his team secure a 4-0 victory. Fans will next see the Portuguese icon in action when Al Nassr faces Al Feiha on February 7 at Al-Awwal Park.
