10 star players whose clubs refused to sell them

#2 Cristiano Ronaldo

Real Madrid failed to sign Cristiano Ronaldo in 2008.

When Cristiano Ronaldo arrived at Manchester United in 2003, there was no doubt that he was amongst the brightest young talent in the world of football.

Yet, his development over the next 6 seasons under the guidance of Sir Alex Fergusson surprised many as the Portuguese player went from being another talented attacker to a prolific goal scorer who possessed the ability to tear apart even the best of defences.

With Ronaldo scoring goals at a regular frequency and establishing himself as a player to reckon with at the Old Trafford, it was inevitable that he would attract the attention of European heavyweights Real Madrid, and the Spanish giants did not hesitate from letting Manchester United know that they were willing to go to any extent to sign the attacker to ensure they had the best player on the planet on their books in 2007.

While Ronaldo seemed very eager to make the move, Manchester United were not too keen to part ways with the man who possessed the golden touch and refused to sell him despite the efforts of the Portuguese player as well as the Spanish club.

However, the club could only hold on to him for another season before getting the move that he desperately wanted when Real decided to fork out £89 million for his services and the Portuguese player has repaid the club’s faith in full with his performances since joining them.