Cristiano Ronaldo will forever be a Manchester United icon.
The first of Cristiano Ronaldo’s two stints at Manchester United started when Sir Alex Ferguson decided to bring the talented teenager to Old Trafford after the Reds visited Sporting CP for a pre-season friendly in August 2003.
Ronaldo made such an impression in that game, in particular against John O’Shea, United’s first team players urged Ferguson to sign him.
A deal was quickly done and Ronaldo was handed the iconic no.7 shirt to replace David Beckham, who had joined Real Madrid earlier in the summer.
From the age of 18, United fans watched Ronaldo develop into one of the best players of all time. He wasn’t the same player when he returned in 2021, but still scored goals under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Ronaldo won nine trophies in his first six years at United but his legacy could look very different had he joined another club from Sporting.
Cristiano Ronaldo reveals Barcelona interest
Cristiano Ronaldo reveals Barcelona interest
Ronaldo was being courted by several clubs when United signed him in 2003.
While Arsenal were thought to have been chasing Ronaldo, so were La Liga giants Barcelona.
Ronaldo left United in 2009 to join Real Madrid where he enjoyed the peak years of his playing career. He is currently playing for Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.
Speaking to Edu Aguirre from El Chiringuito, as quoted by Fabrizio Romano, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner revealed that he could have played for Barcelona before United.
Ronaldo’s move to Barcelona collapsed, but later, he went on to play for the Catalan giants’ biggest rival, Real Madrid – and won the lot.
This means Barcelona could have had Ronaldo and Lionel Messi developing in the same team.
The Portugal international revealed why his move to Barcelona fell through.
“Yes, it was when I was playing at Sporting Lisbon and I had the opportunity to join various clubs, one of which was Barcelona,” Ronaldo said.
“I remember being with a person from Barcelona who wanted to sign me, but it didn’t happen. Maybe they wanted to bring me in, but it would have been for the following year.
“Then, a club like came along and signed me immediately. You know how fast everything moves in football.”
History could have been very different had Ronaldo joined Barcelona instead of United.
For starters, Ronaldo would have never worked under Ferguson, who is the greatest coach he’s ever had.
Ronaldo never looked back after Manchester United transfer
Ronaldo arrived at United with plenty of promise, but his talents had to be finely tuned by Ferguson before he became the world-beater we all know him as now.
Frustrating at times, especially at the start, Ronaldo eventually perfected his game at Old Trafford but enjoyed his best years at Real Madrid.
Ronaldo won everything possible during his time at United and he’ll forever look back at that as the most important step of his career.
It’s far away from Saudi Arabia.
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