The president of Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal has revealed that the only reason that they were not able to sign Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo this summer was because they were hit with a transfer ban rather than the player rejecting them. He also spoke of how talks began to enter the final stages of negotiations.
Ronaldo was desperate to leave Old Trafford over the summer having endured an underwhelming homecoming last summer. The forward returned to United with the hopes of spearheading the club’s return to the top of the Premier League, but it was far from that as the Red Devils finished sixth in the table.
Jorge Mendes, Ronaldo’s agent, then held talks with several other clubs in a bid to get his client out of United and at a club that would be competing in the Champions League. Chelsea and Bayern Munich were amongst those who held talks, but a move never materialised for the 37-year-old.
Ronaldo was also linked with a move to Saudi Arabia over the summer, having been offered a two-year deal that would’ve seen him earn £2million per week. And Fahad ben Nafel, the president of Al-Hillal, has confirmed he did hold talks with the former Real Madrid star.
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He told the Thamanya YouTube channel: “Yes, we negotiated with Ronaldo. The problem was not in the money or the principle, Al-Hilal is able to bring in the stars of the world, but it was in the decision of the Sports Arbitration Center that prevented us from registering the players.
“We did not stop negotiating with the players despite the decision to ban, but we were delaying entering the final stage of the negotiations until the ban was lifted.” Al-Hilal were handed a transfer ban following the controversy surrounding Mohamed Kannos deciding not to leave the club to join Al-Nassr at the last minute.
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Ronaldo has started just once for United so far this season, making five appearances off of the bench, with Erik ten Hag preferring to play Marcus Rashford as a No 9 as he looks to implement his tactics on the side. And the five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s former teammate Wes Brown feels that the player will look to move in January if he is not able to recapture a spot in the starting eleven.
He told 888sport: “He’s very respected and looked up to at the club but listen, Ronaldo will want to play. It’s as simple as that. So, if something happens in January I’m pretty sure he would go, but until then I don’t think he’ll disrespect the players by having a sulk and a moan. He’s not that sort of character.”
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