"Yes, he was offered to us for two million Euros cheaper than to United, who ended up paying €19 million," admitted former Barcelona president Joan Laporta in an interview a few months ago. He was talking about Cristiano Ronaldo – how Jorge Mendes, who had handled Rafael Marquez's and Ricardo Quaresma's moves to Barcelona in the summer of 2003, had informed them of another one of his young promising clients.
In the next instalment of our What If series, we take a look at a football world where Ronaldo moved to Barcelona instead of Manchester United straight from Sporting. How radically different would the world of football be? Here we take a look:
#1 Liverpool would have had a Premier League title to their name
Make no mistake, the Liverpool side Rafael Benitez assembled for the 2008-09 season was and remains one of the greatest lineups Premier League has witnessed. Pepe Reina in goal, Sami Hyppia and Jamie Carragher in defence, Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano in midfield, Steven Gerrard playing behind Fernando Torres – it was a team that oozed class in all areas of the pitch.
Yet this side could not keep up with the ruthless efficiency of Manchester United, who kept eking out 1-0 wins and injury time winners. Manchester United without Ronaldo, therefore, would fall short of their title rivals – and Liverpool fans would have had a Premier League title to their name after 19 years of wait, rather than the current predicament (27 years and counting).
#2 Ronaldo would’ve won more Ballon D'Ors than Messi
This might be one of the more debated predictions – but it is based on the criteria that has usually been deployed to judge the best footballer on the planet over the past decade. Ballon D'ors have always unfailingly been about the goals scored stat – denying the accolade to mercurial talents like Xavi and Iniesta in the process.
In a team with Ronaldo, every coach would mould Messi into a playmaker, most probably of a number 10 ilk – the partnership would be more devastating than anything football has ever seen. Ronaldo would score goals for fun with such service, and Messi would enjoy the presence of a teammate who can put away all the chances his magic can create.
But in the process, inevitably, Ronaldo will take centre stage due to the number of goals scored – taking home more Ballon D'Ors in the process.
#3 Barcelona would’ve won and retained the Champions League
No team, since the rebranding of "European Cup" to "Champions League" in 1992, has managed to retain the trophy – but if anyone has come close, it is Guardiola's Barca side of 2008-12. Having won the competition in 2009 and 2011, they fell cruelly short in 2010 at the semi-final stage, at the hands of Jose Mourinho's indomitable Inter Milan.
If Ronaldo had been added to the mix of Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, Fabregas, Pique etc – the golden generation of La Masia – that side would have established its dominance over any other side in football history even more firmly.
Just as with the hat-trick of La Liga titles from 2008-09 to 2010-11, Barcelona might have even have had a hat-trick of Champions League titles during the same period. Well, that would have been quite a hattrick of a double.
#4 Neymar would end up at Real Madrid
It is quite unusual for the crown jewels of a Brazil and Argentina team to be such close friends – but Messi and Neymar are currently rewriting history. The story of the MSN trio's friendship off the pitch has become common knowledge now – and was given great hype when they were enjoying astounding success in 2014-15.
With Ronaldo and Messi already part of the squad, however, in our alternate world, Barcelona would not have been in the market for Neymar – both due to wage bill restraints and due to similarities in playing positions.
Naturally, he would go to Real Madrid then – and we would have the captain of the Brazilian and Argentinian national teams going all out against each other in the Spanish El Clasico.
Their rivalry both at the domestic and international level would have been a matter of legend – and a treat for both South American and European Media.
#5 France would have won Euro 2016
The story of another team who failed to conquer it all despite possessing the best squad, France was easily the favourites for a tournament on home soil with Griezmann and Pogba coming on the back of spectacular seasons for their respective clubs. That was, of course, before Portugal decided the whole script needed the twist reminiscent of a Hollywood movie.
A Ronaldo that grows up in Barcelona would be far less suited to carry a team single handedly on his shoulders – rather than developing into the complete goal machine as he has done, Ronaldo might have been a nimble cog in a fast thinking Barca machine.
Portugal, as a result, would have suffered – and their leader would have struggled to inspire an average team to their first major tournament win in history.
Benefiting as a result, naturally, would be France. French fans would go home on the evening of 10 July 2016 singing and dancing, celebrating their first major silverware since 2003 Confederations Cup. Doing the rounds in the social media, then, would have been the picture of Antoine Griezmann with his special dance moves – rather than the one with his dejected countenance.
