In a rare condition of unemployment, Cristiano Ronaldo sees his name on the radar of alternative markets

Cristiano Ronaldo, 37, started the World Cup in Qatar in an unprecedented condition in his successful career: unemployed.

The situation of the captain of the Portuguese national team seems unthinkable when it comes to a player five times elected the best in the world, top scorer in the Champions League (140 goals) and the one who scored the most goals in history for a men’s national team (118).

But he was the one who forced it. On the eve of the World Cup, a controversial interview by him, with strong criticism of Manchester United, led the club to seek the termination of his contract.

In order not to demand any financial compensation before releasing the athlete to another club, the English team imposed the condition that the association interested in having him assume the rest of the salary amounts provided for in the striker’s contract, until June 2023.

The Portuguese has the highest salary among Premier League players. In England, clubs pay their athletes per week, and the number 7 receives 515,000 pounds sterling (R$ 3.27 million) every seven days, that is, R$ 13 million per month or R$ 156 million per year.

The value even inhibits some of the main teams in European football. In the last transfer window, when he already knew that United would not compete in the Champions League and was willing to look for a new club, Cristiano Ronaldo had his name speculated at Chelsea, at Borussia Dortmund, at Bayern Munich, at Olympique, at Sporting and even at Barcelona – Real Madrid’s biggest rival, where he is an idol–, but none of them came forward with a proposal.

Age is also a factor that weighs against the player. Despite continuing to accumulate important marks, such as becoming the first player in Qatar to score in five different editions of World Cups, he will turn 38 on February 5th.

Therefore, the most recent clubs that had their name somehow speculated as a possible destination for the star are from alternative markets or with some connection with them.

The CEO of the A-League, Australia’s football league, Danny Townsend, was one of those who expressed interest in having the player in the championship.

“Certainly we are interested in bringing him to Australia. Obviously, it’s a long shot but we have a proposal to be considered. We are talking and we will see what will happen”, said the manager to the Australian radio SportFM.

The Spanish newspaper Marca, however, recently stated that the proposals that would have most interested the player would be Al-Nassr, Saudi Arabia, and Newcastle, England.

Interestingly, the English team is also linked to the money coming from the Saudis, as it was purchased, in September 2021, by the sovereign fund controlled by the royal family of Saudi Arabia for R$ 2.2 billion at the time.

Money, therefore, would not be an issue for these two teams. But each choice has a very different scenario: stay in England or try alternative football.

Cristiano Ronaldo stood out throughout his career for being an extremely competitive player, moved by challenges. It wouldn’t be surprising if he opted for a club with more football tradition than receiving a bulkier salary.

After creating some turmoil in the Portuguese team before the start of the Cup, however, he will possibly leave that decision for after the World Cup.

Right now, his biggest goal is to win the unprecedented title. So much so that he even said an unexpected phrase when asked about his future if he wins the World Cup.

“Yes. Retired. 100%.”

To see.