Jorge Mendes used Cristiano Ronaldo to scare United and... it worked | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Manchester United was one of the major sagas of the summer of 2021. After several rumors linking the Portuguese international to rival Manchester City, it was the Red Devils who secured the forward, in a second stint at Old Trafford that, nevertheless, ended tumultuously and was marked by conflict with Erik ten Hag.

According to an extensive report published this Wednesday by the Daily Mail, Jorge Mendes was behind the strong associations of CR7 with City, in a strategy aimed at pressuring Manchester United to move forward with the deal. According to the British newspaper, the alleged interest of the club managed by Pep Guardiola was never real.

The publication describes the process as a true "masterstroke" by the Portuguese agent, who allegedly left United "in panic" by making them believe that Cristiano Ronaldo "already had the pen in hand" to sign with the city rival.

"That created panic. The idea of him scoring for City against United was too much for them. They were terrified of the fans' reaction," a source revealed to the Daily Mail, adding that the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo practically contradicted the project Ole Gunnar Solskjaer intended to implement.

Despite the deal - valued at around 20 million pounds - seeming irresistible for a player of Cristiano Ronaldo's stature, the same source mentions that the Portuguese forward ended up being a "disruptive" presence in the locker room, primarily due to his salary exceeding 500,000 pounds per week.

There was also tension regarding the group's leadership, particularly due to the desire to strip Harry Maguire of the captain's armband, a situation that contributed to internal imbalances. Solskjaer himself later acknowledged the impact of this dynamic: "Maybe it affected the locker room. He was the top scorer that season, but I was out of a job ten weeks later."

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.