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Barcelona legend Gerard Pique once claimed Cristiano Ronaldo and Vinicius Jr were close to joining the Catalans before signing for Real Madrid. The Portuguese superstar is considered a Los Blancos legend, while Vinicius is a rising superstar at the club today.
Cristiano Ronaldo left Manchester United to sign for Real Madrid in 2009 and spent nine successful years at the Bernabeu. In 2018, he signed for Italian side Juventus. Meanwhile, Vinicius Jr signed for Los Blancos in the same year Ronaldo left and quickly became an integral part of the squad. He is a regular starter at the Bernabeu and is often considered among the best players in the world. Much like his idol Ronaldo, the Brazilian sports the iconic number seven shirt for Los Merengues.
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In a 2022 interview with Ibai's Twitch channel, Barcelona legend Gerard Pique claimed both Cristiano Ronaldo and Vinicius Jr were close to signing for the Catalans before joining Real Madrid. He said (via Barca Universal):
"Cristiano was once close to Barca before he signed for Madrid. Same for Vinicius."
Gerard Pique spent most of his professional career at Barcelona, representing them between 2008 and 2022. The Spaniard retired from football in November 2022.
When Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo claimed he was close to joining Barcelona before Manchester United
In an interview with El Chiringuito in February 2025, Cristiano Ronaldo claimed Barcelona were one of the clubs he was close to joining early in his career. The legendary Portuguese referred to his time at Sporting Lisbon, ahead of signing for Manchester United in 2003.
"I could have signed for Barça when I was playing for Sporting Lisbon. I was with someone from the club and they wanted to sign me, but it didn’t happen. They wanted to sign me that year and join them the following year. But Manchester wanted me for that year," Ronaldo said (via Yahoo Sports)
Had Ronaldo signed for Barcelona instead, fans may have witnessed him playing alongside his archrival, Lionel Messi, early in his career. Despite being pitted against each other for the last two decades, many have wondered whether the two juggernauts of football could have worked together in the same team.
Cristiano Ronaldo eventually ended up joining Barca's archrivals, Real Madrid in 2009. The Portuguese legend has faced the Catalans 34 times in his career and scored 20 times against them. He has won 10 games, lost 15 times, and drew nine times against La Blaugrana.
