Manchester United have reached an agreement with Juventus to re-sign Cristiano Ronaldo, according to a statement published on the club’s website.
United have agreed to pay £12.8m plus up to £6.9m in add-ons for the 36-year-old Portugal captain, with the deal subject to personal terms, a visa and a medical.
Ronaldo first joined the club in 2003, scoring 118 goals in 292 outings, before departing in 2009 for Spanish giants Real Madrid for a then world record transfer fee.
The deal came after a dramatic turn of events after it appeared that Ronaldo would make the move to neighbours and rivals Manchester City, with some reports suggesting that he had even agreed personal terms with Pep Guardiola’s men.
Instead, Ronaldo’s agent Jorge Mendes engineered the move back to United and a return to the club where he won his first Champions League crown, three Premier League titles, two League Cups and an FA Cup.
The statement released by the club said: “Manchester United is delighted to confirm that the club has reached agreement with Juventus for the transfer of Cristiano Ronaldo, subject to agreement of personal terms, visa and medical.
“Everyone at the club looks forward to welcoming Cristiano back to Manchester.”
In a farewell post to Juventus on Instagram, Cristiano Ronaldo said: “Today I depart from an amazing club, the biggest in Italy and surely one of the biggest in all of Europe. I gave my heart and soul for Juventus and I’ll always love the city of Turin until my final days.
“The ‘tiffosi bianconeri’ always respected me and I tried to thank that respect by fighting for them in every game, every season, every competition. In the end, we can all look back and realize that we achieved great things, not all that we wanted, but still, we wrote a pretty beautiful story together.
“I will always be one of you. You are now part of my history, as I feel that I’m part of yours. Italy, Juve, Turin, tiffosi bianconeri, you’ll always be in my heart.”
Image source: The Guardian
