Ronaldo's
departure from Real Madrid has reportedly been fueled by strained relations
with the club's president (Florentino Perez). Many thought that Ronaldo would
return to Manchester United if he were ever to leave Real, making his Juventus
transfer a big surprise. In his nine years at Real, Ronaldo has had four UEFA
Champions League wins, two La Liga trophies, three FIFA Club World Cups, two
Copas del Rey, two UEFA Super Cups and two Spanish Super Cups.
Cristiano Ronaldo wrote
an open letter to fans explaining why he left Real Madrid. The letter was
posted on Real Madrid's website. His letter read:
"These
years at Real Madrid and in this city of Madrid have quite possibly been the
happiest years of my life. I only have feelings of great gratitude to this
club, to the fans and to the city. I can only give thanks to all of them for
the love and affection that I have received.
"However,
I feel that the time has come to begin a new stage of my life, and that is why
I have asked the club to accept my transfer. I feel it this way and I am asking
everyone, and especially my fans, to please understand me.
"These
have been nine of the most absolutely marvelous years. These have been nine
unique years. This for me has been a very emotional time, full of deliberating,
although difficult because Real Madrid is at a very demanding and high level,
but I know very well that I will never forget that here I have enjoyed football
in a unique way.
"I
have had fabulous teammates, both on the field and in the dressing room. I have
felt the warmth of an incredible fan base, and together we have conquered three
straight Champions Leagues titles and four Champions League titles over five
years. And together with them in addition, on an individual level, I have had
the satisfaction of having won four Ballons d'Or and three Golden Boots, all
during my tenure at this most immense and extraordinary club.
"Real
Madrid has won my heart and that of my family and it is because of that, now
more than ever, I would like to say thank you. Thank you to the club, to the
President, to the directors, to my teammates, to all the staff, the doctors,
the physios and all the incredible people who work there in each of their
capacities and who pay tireless attention to every little detail.
"Infinite
thanks once more to our supporters and thanks also to Spanish football. During
these nine exciting years, I have come up against great players. My respect and
recognition to all of them.
"I
have thought a lot and I know that the moment has come for a new cycle. I am
leaving, but I will always feel that this jersey, this badge and the Santiago
Bernabéu are mine, no matter where I am.
"Thanks
to everyone and, of course, as I said the first time in our stadium nine years
ago: ¡Hala Madrid!"
His former Real teammates took to Twitter to celebrate the greatness of
the player.
.@Cristiano, your goals, your numbers and everything we've won together speak for themselves. You have earned a special place in the history of @RealMadrid. As Madridistas we'll remember you always. It's been a pleasure to play alongside you, bicho. Big hig and good luck! 🍀👍🏻 pic.twitter.com/NaywaDd3gw— Sergio Ramos (@SergioRamos) July 10, 2018
Benvenuto a Torino, Cristiano 🏴🏳 We had a great time together in Madrid, I can‘t wait to get back to work with you! Today is a special day for @juventusfc! 💪🏽 #FinoAllaFine #ForzaJuve #SK6 @cristiano pic.twitter.com/iU4ULPeHmg— Sami Khedira (@SamiKhedira) July 10, 2018
An incredible player and a top guy! It has been a pleasure to play alongside you for the last 5 years. Good luck for the future my friend 🏆🏆🏆🏆 pic.twitter.com/KBYLMYaWjP— Gareth Bale (@GarethBale11) July 10, 2018
.@Cristiano, your goals, your numbers and everything we've won together speak for themselves. You have earned a special place in the history of @RealMadrid. As Madridistas we'll remember you always. It's been a pleasure to play alongside you, bicho. Big hig and good luck! 🍀👍🏻 pic.twitter.com/NaywaDd3gw— Sergio Ramos (@SergioRamos) July 10, 2018
Crucial for the trophies we won in the past years! A true champion. It was a pleasure playing with you! All the best, legend. @Cristiano pic.twitter.com/1C5x2ARSBT— Toni Kroos (@ToniKroos) July 10, 2018
Real Madrid
uploaded a video on the 10th of June in honor of Ronaldo on their Twitter
account, captioned "Thank you Cristiano."
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) July 10, 2018
Juventus announced
the arrival of the Portuguese forward on their Twitter account with a picture
captioned #CR7.
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) July 10, 2018
This is probably
Ronaldo's biggest leap into the unknown as he leaves one of the biggest clubs
in the world, a league in which he is dominant to go to Serie A, which is less coveted
than La Liga. Juventus' decision to buy Ronaldo is motivated by their desire to meet up with the most profitable European clubs - Manchester United, Real Madrid and Barcelona, and eventually dominate Europe.
"If the Portuguese international can maintain a high-level of fitness and performance, then one assumes that La Vecchia Signora (The Old Lady) will play better, win more, and increase its associated revenues," Simon Chadwick, Professor of Sports Enterprise, Salford University Manchester, told CNN Sport. Ronaldo has embarked on a new challenge and Pele found his move laudable as he congratulated the Portuguese talisman on Twitter.
"If the Portuguese international can maintain a high-level of fitness and performance, then one assumes that La Vecchia Signora (The Old Lady) will play better, win more, and increase its associated revenues," Simon Chadwick, Professor of Sports Enterprise, Salford University Manchester, told CNN Sport. Ronaldo has embarked on a new challenge and Pele found his move laudable as he congratulated the Portuguese talisman on Twitter.
Congratulations, @Cristiano. It was hard to join another side after so long at Santos but it was the right move. Champions never tire of new challenges. /Parabéns, Cristiano! Eu achei muito difícil defender outra camisa depois de tanto tempo no @SantosFC, mas foi o certo a fazer. https://t.co/aA44BKpakr— Pelé (@Pele) July 10, 2018
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