What’s the story?
Ever since the story that Cristiano Ronaldo is unhappy at Real Madrid came to the fore, following the tax fraud allegations leveled against him by Spanish authorities, rumour mills are going haywire surrounding the Portuguese’s future. Manchester United are believed to be front-runners in the race for the 4-time Ballon d’Or winner, while a stay at the Santiago Bernabeu hasn’t been ruled out either.
However, according to English newspaper Daily Express, Chelsea are the latest club to enter the race to sign the 32-year-old, with club owner Roman Abramovich willing to go to any extent to secure arguably one of the best players in the world. The report adds that the Blues are willing to offer long-term Real Madrid target Eden Hazard in a player plus cash deal for the Portuguese sensation, a deal which will most probably be the biggest in history.
It is also being said that the move to sign Ronaldo has been done with a virtue to secure the future of manager Antonio Conte.
In case you didn’t know…
Cristiano Ronaldo has been accused of defrauding Spanish tax authorities of €14.7 million, which were earned by him on his image rights between 2011 and 2014 using shell companies in the Virgin Islands. The 4-time Ballon d’Or has refuted the reports and has maintained his innocence while Real Madrid have publicly backed him. However, following the reports of the fraud, Ronaldo is said to be unhappy in Spain and wants to leave Real Madrid as a result.
The heart of the matter
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is set to capitalize on the unrest between Cristiano Ronaldo and Real Madrid, and is prepared to offer his club’s best player (Eden Hazard) in a superstar plus cash deal, expected to be worth somewhere in excess of £150 million.
Not only will it be the most expensive transfer of all time, it will be almost 2 times as big as the world record transfer, while also being the biggest deal in history of football due to Hazard going the other way.
Madrid have been reported to hold an interest in the Belgian for a long time now, with manager Zinedine Zidane said to be a huge admirer of the 26-year-old.
Also Read: Reports: €55 million rated Real Madrid superstar to choose Manchester United over Chelsea
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Author's Take
While the deal sounds to be too good to be true, it is Chelsea and Roman Abramovich we are talking about, and nothing is impossible for the Russian billionaire. The Blues are one of the few clubs in the world to have the pedigree to pull off a deal like this. And while it still remains unlikely, football has never been too predictable and surprises do happen.
