Cristiano Ronaldo Is Linked With A Serie A Return, But Only One Team Needs Him

You have to hand it to Cristiano Ronaldo, he knows how to burn a bridge with a football team.

The Manchester United striker gave a lengthy and fairly explosive interview with Piers Morgan, outlining his grievances on how his disappointing second spell with United has panned out.

It’s not often footballers, especially not ones the calibre of Ronaldo, reveal their inner most thoughts in such an honest way. Generally, issues like the ones Ronaldo openly talked about are handled behind closed doors, away from the public domain and discussed via agents, coaches and executives.

But by going public, and in such a way, Ronaldo was insuring that he was slamming the door shut on ever playing for United again, and then burning said door to ashes. A legacy somewhat tarnished in the space of a 90-minute interview.

As Wayne Rooney, Ronaldo’s former United teammate, pointed out in the aftermath of the interview, the Portuguese megastar seems to have a hard time accepting that time is catching up to him, and his days atop the football mountain are numbered, his powers diminishing with each passing month.

And this is to be expected. Ronaldo will soon be 38, and not many players remain at the very highest levels of the sport at that age, and very few who are outfield players.

So the question now is, where can Ronaldo play his football? what choices are left available to him at this stage?

The US, of course, is always an option. Teams would be frothing at the mouth to sign him, given how much of a commercial behemoth Ronaldo is across the world, yet from everything Ronaldo has said over the years, the competitor in him probably wouldn’t contemplate joining a side in the MLS. He still believes he deserves to be joining and starring in a Champions League side.

An emotional return to Sporting, the side where he make his breakthrough two decades ago, also seems to have been ruled out: his wages, thought to be close to £500,000-per-week ($594,000), would rule him out for 99% of clubs in Spain and Germany.

So what about a return to Italy and Serie A?

Ronaldo has been linked with making a comeback in Italy’s top flight, but his wages would be a massive stumbling block for all clubs in Serie A. in recent days, Roma and Napoli have emerged as potential destinations, but is there any realism to the links?

Ronaldo was linked with a move to Napoli last summer. The rumours going around would see Victor Osimhen join United for cash plus Ronaldo. Yet nothing ever came of it and Napoli sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli subsequently denied that any such talks ever took place.

Napoli don’t need Ronaldo, commercial interests aside. Luciano Spalletti’s men are flying high at the top of the table and are unbeaten in Serie A. The cohesion and unity within the squad, not to mention the style of play, doesn’t lend itself for Ronaldo’s arrival.

Spalletti has Osimhen, Giovanni Simeone and Giacomo Raspadori all vying for a single spot in his 4-3-3, what good could adding Ronaldo to that mix do?

Ronaldo’s ability to put the ball in the back of the net still remains almost unparalleled in the game, even if his movement is a little more rigid, more economical, these days. What 2022 Ronaldo offers now would be better suited to Jose Mourinho’s Roma. Mourinho’s side are struggling to score goals, with Tammy Abraham enduring a miserable first three months of the season in which he’s only scored three goals in 15 games.

There were even reports that Roma were considering selling Abraham in January, should an acceptable offer arrive for the Englishman. Ronaldo’s experience would make the difference to a side that has little of it in terms of winning trophies. Moreover, he would plug right into the top of Mourinho’s 4-3-2-1 system, and he would cobble up the chances Abraham has missed.

But the real problem would be wages. Roma wouldn’t come close to matching what Ronaldo’s earning at United. But should United terminate his contract, as has been reported, and he significantly lowers his demands, then Roma would be the perfect place for him.

Will we see Ronaldo in the dark red of Roma come January, however? It remains doubtful. But one thing is certain, he won’t be wearing the blood red of United ever again.