Cristiano Ronaldo signed a new five-year deal
with Real Madrid in November that helped him
become the best-paid athlete in the world.
But now a source close to the player now says
he "doesn't want to stay in Spain" because he is
"upset" after being accused of tax fraud in the
country.
Ronaldo, 32, joined Madrid from Manchester
United for a then world-record £80m in 2009.
The Portugal legend has scored a club-record
406 goals in his 394 appearances for Real.
Only two weeks ago, he helped Zinedine Zidane's
side win a 12th European Cup with two goals in a
4-1 victory over Juventus in the Champions
League final in Cardiff.
Will that turn out to be his last appearance for
Los Merengues? Where could he go? And what
would Madrid do without him?
Ronaldo 'wants to leave Madrid'
Football Daily podcast: Will Ronaldo actually
leave Real?
Ronaldo's astonishing 12 months in pictures
Ronaldo accused of tax evasion
June 2016: Ronaldo's Euro 2016 campaign did
not start well - 20 shots, zero goals for Portugal.
But a superb, flicked finish against Hungary in
the group stages made him the first player to
score in four different European Championship
finals
'If his mind's made up, it'll be hard to change'
Ramon Calderon, Real Madrid president between
2006-2009, speaking to BBC Radio 5 live
Maybe he's just upset. Maybe it is something he
said in a moment when he's really angry. We
don't know yet. He's been happy here, he helped
us to win three Champions Leagues over the
past four years, so I hope he will stay.
But, if he's made his mind up, I don't think it's
going to be easy to change. He's very strong-
minded and clear in what he wants. If he leaves
I don't see him in a place like China or the
Middle East. He will be always playing for a big
club and trying to get more titles and more
personal awards.
He's a fighter and he's in good shape. He can
play again for the best club and I think that club
now is Real Madrid. I can't tell you what he's
doing but I hope he will stay, I'm sure he'll stay.
'His people called all the Spanish papers'
Richard Martin, sports correspondent in Spain for
Reuters
This is not the first time Cristiano Ronaldo has
sought to demonstrate his power at Real Madrid
by flirting with leaving. In 2012 he used a pitch-
side interview to declare "I'm sad and the club
know why," provoking panic among fans and at
boardroom level.
This latest move, using a newspaper from his
own country to declare his discontent, feels
remarkably similar. It should also be noted that
sources close to Ronaldo called the offices of all
Spanish newspapers last night to inform them of
the impending front cover story in A Bola.
This latest power struggle is likely to have the
same outcome as the last: the offer of an
improved contract to legislate for the damage
caused by the tax scandal. There is also more
than a whiff of deflecting attention from his
wrongdoing to a soap opera of where his future
lies, emphatically shifting the agenda.
Although he is their all-time top scorer, Ronaldo
does not feel undying loyalty to Madrid and has
repeatedly aired his grievances at being
occasionally booed by supporters.
Even so, the four-time world player of the year
believes he still has plenty to give at his 32
years and he knows there is no better club for
him than the European and Spanish champions,
which is why, in reality, he is going nowhere.
'Madrid won't stand in his way - they want
Mbappe'
Pete Jenson, Madrid-based football writer
Ronaldo's intention of leaving Real Madrid may
well come to nothing, but if he does not back
down and looks to force his way out of the club,
Madrid will not stand in his way providing they
find a club prepared to make it worth their while.
The reaction in Madrid on Friday was one of
calm acceptance. The player has indicated a
desire to leave before, most notably in 2012
when he complained of not being supported by
the club's directors.
The question will be: who buys him? His 1bn
euro (£874.88m) buyout clause is beyond
everyone's reach but Madrid would probably
accept closer to 150m euros (£131m) and
immediately look to reinvest it in 18-year-old
Monaco forward Kylian Mbappe.
His former club Manchester United would be the
romantics' choice to take him but Paris St-
Germain are perhaps more likely suitors.
They have long been admirers and their president
Nasser Al-Khelaifi is a friend of the Portugal
international. Ronaldo would fill the hole left 12
months ago by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Who could afford him?
Rob Wilson, football finance expert and lecturer at
Sheffield Hallam University
Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal,
Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Juventus would
have the financial resources to put together a
competitive offer within the realms of Financial
Fair Play rules.
The other side of the question would be whether
they would want to commit so much on one
player.
It would be interesting to see what kind of fee
Madrid would demand. I would estimate
something in the region of £100-120m. To put
that into a wider context, that's like a Premier
League club spending the entirety of its TV deal
money on one player. Plus of course, there's the
wages on top of that.
Media playback is not supported on this device
People cannot criticise - Ronaldo
Another point to bear in mind is that this would
not be a 'Galactico' move, where the value of
commercial endorsements and merchandise
sales would help a club recoup money spent on
the transfer fee.
Ronaldo comes surrounded by a group of very
well-informed advisors, who already have all
various commercial deals in place. For a
potential buyer like Manchester United, they
might look to leverage something from the story
of his return to the club, somehow make that
commercially attractive, but we are scratching
around on the margins really.
Where you can start to make leverage on players
is when they are younger - which is why a player
like 18-year-old Monaco striker Kylian Mbappe
would be a far more attractive proposition. A
buying club knows they can make an awful lot
back.
Listen: 'Ronaldo would love to return to Old
Trafford'
Would Man Utd have him back?
BBC Sport's Simon Stone
Manchester United and all of their fans would
love to have Ronaldo back. He made 292
appearances in his time at the club, scoring 118
goals. Wayne Rooney has played double the
number of games and scored double the number
of goals, but he is held in nowhere near as high
esteem.
The fans still sing Ronaldo's name, and all the
talk on social media today has been encouraging
United chief executive Ed Woodward to get him
back.
The problem for United is that they have been
down this road before. They have thought they
could get players from Madrid in the past,
notably defender Sergio Ramos in 2015, who
ended up signing a new deal with the Spanish
club.
United will be surveying the situation, keeping
their head down. They won't be telling anyone
that yes, they want to sign Ronaldo, but if they
got the chance they would be straight in there.
The word is that he and Jose Mourinho fell out
when the latter was in charge of Madrid, but if
you were to ask United fans to choose between
the two, they would say Ronaldo.
It would be up to Jose to make it work, because
I don't think many United fans would understand
if they did not take the chance to sign him - if
the option was there.
Ronaldo is only one of four players in the club's
history to have won the Ballon d'Or while still a
United player. The other three - George Best,
Denis Law and Bobby Charlton - have a statue
outside the stadium.
'You can't replace 50 goals a season'
Eduardo Alvarez, Madrid-based football writer
speaking to BBC World Service Sport
The reaction among Madrid fans has been one of
shock and frustration after a fantastic end to the
season. If the Spanish taxman wants him to pay
his taxes and he feels mistreated there is not a
lot the club can do. You cannot replace 50 goals
a season for the past nine seasons. It would be
huge if he left Madrid.
It just seems the wrong moment to do this,
especially to say it through a Portuguese paper.
But it is obvious he feels unfairly treated. He can
voice his concerns but the reaction of many
supporters is that he should talk to the club
instead of talking to the press.
It is unbelievable, most Madrid fans felt like they
had a good five years of success ahead of them.
The fact that the top scorer seems to be leaving
suddenly, out of nowhere, no-one will have
expected that.
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