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Cristiano Ronaldo has been looking to engineer an exit from Manchester United all summer but his efforts have been met with little success so far. The Portuguese icon was miffed with the complacency shown by United in the opening stages of the summer transfer window and wanted to leave.
Manchester United had a terrible outing in the 2021-22 season and failed to qualify for the Champions League after finishing sixth in the Premier League table. Ronaldo was named 'Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year' at Manchester United last term and wanted to jump ship in the summer.
However, due to his age and stylistic concerns, teams haven't been very open to taking the 37-year-old in. Without further ado, let's take a look at the five clubs that have rejected the Manchester United superstar this summer.
#5 Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund are one of the latest clubs to reject Ronaldo. According to German publication Bild (via The Mirror), the 37-year-old had set his sights on the Bundesliga outfit as a potential destination. However, Dortmund were not interested.
Ronaldo's agent Jorge Mendes reportedly offered him to Dortmund but they rejected the idea. Dortmund are not interested in paying the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's exorbitant wages.
The fact that they've decided not to sign him despite Sebastian Haller's absence after being diagnosed with a testicular tumor is quite telling.
In a press conference last Friday (August 19), Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke dismissed the idea of the former Real Madrid star arriving at Signal Iduna Park. He said (via ProSoccerWire):
“I love this player, it’s certainly a charming idea to see Cristiano Ronaldo play at Signal Iduna Park. But there is no contact at all between those involved. So you should stop talking about it.”
#4 Atletico Madrid
Quite surprisingly, Ronaldo was reportedly offered to Atletico Madrid by Jorge Mendes earlier this summer. However, according to a report in MARCA (via Times Now), the Rojiblancos, cross-city rivals of the player's former club Real Madrid, backed out of the idea due to economic reasons.
Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo also dismissed the idea of the Manchester United superstar coming to Madrid. He told radio show El Partidazo de COPE:
“I don’t know who invented this story about Cristiano Ronaldo to Atletico Madrid. It’s definitely not true. It’s practically impossible for him to come to Atletico Madrid.”
Shortly after the rumors linking him to Atletico surfaced, the club's core fanbase unfurled a banner with the message 'CR7 NOT WELCOME' during their pre-season friendly against Numancia in late July.
#3 Paris Saint-Germain
Fans would love to see Ronaldo team up with Lionel Messi at least once during their careers. However, the idea is likely to remain a fantasy even though it was floated to Paris Saint-Germain this summer. As per ESPN, the Manchester United no. 7 was offered to PSG earlier this summer by his agent Mendes.
But the Ligue 1 champions were not interested in signing him as they simply did not view him as a needed asset. PSG already have Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, and Neymar in their squad.
All three of these players earn a huge amount in wages and PSG were simply not interested in meeting the legendary forward's wage demands.
#2 Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich openly rejected the idea of signing Ronaldo this summer. Mendes offers the Manchester United star to the Bavarians and they contemplated the move before deciding not to pursue it. Oliver Kahn, the president of Bayern Munich's Board of Directors, told Kicker (via MARCA):
"We discussed about Cristiano Ronaldo internally - I consider him one of greatest footballers ever.
"Then we came to conclusion that, despite appreciation for Cristiano, he would not fit into our philosophy in the current situation."
#1 Chelsea
According to The Athletic, Ronaldo was a transfer target for Chelsea this summer. Chelsea's new owner Ted Boehly reportedly met with Mendes to discuss the potential transfer of the legendary Portuguese forward in the opening stages of the transfer window.
However, following talks with Thomas Tuchel, the Blues decided to opt out of a deal to sign him, as per Fabrizio Romano. The decision was reportedly always up to Tuchel and the German coach decided that bringing the Manchester United forward to Stamford Bridge was not a great idea.
