Jorge Mendes has spoken to Real Madrid about Ronaldo return
Cristiano Ronaldo's agent has spoken to Real Madrid about the possibility of the Juventus striker's return to the Bernabeu, according to reports in Spain.
Reports have emerged in Spain that Cristiano Ronaldo’s agent has contacted Real Madrid about a possible return following Juventus’ fiasco against Porto in the Champions League, which has left many commentators to single out the Portuguese talisman as a figurehead for blame.
Juventus bowed out of the competition after losing on the away goals ruling to the Portuguese club, who managed two goals in their 3-2 defeat in the second leg in Turin, which was enough to bring the aggregate score to 4-4 to see them through to the quarter-finals.
Ronaldo has been the subject of a barrage of criticism following the game, particularly after a poor performance in which he failed to score a goal in the UCL knock-out stages for the first time in 15 years, as well as his direct fault in Sergio Oliveira’s free-kick goal, which went in after the Juventus star jumped and turned in the wall in what appeared to be an attempt to avoid being hit by the ball.
“Whoever is in the wall cannot be afraid of being hit by the ball. It’s an inexcusable error and there can be no excuses,” said former Juve and Real Madrid boss Fabio Capello, who was one of several high-profile commentators to lay blame on Ronaldo.
Juventus plan to sell Ronaldo in summer - reports
The Porto defeat spelled yet another Champions League failure for Juve since Ronaldo’s arrival in 2018, when hopes were high that the €100 million investment in the Real Madrid superstar could help the Serie A giants to reignite European glory.
As the criticism aimed at Ronaldo has come thick and fast, speculation has intensified that Juve will look to offload Ronaldo at the end of the season, with former Bianconeri president Giovanni Cobolli Gigli urging the club to sell the 36-year-old striker – even suggesting that it was a mistake to have signed him in the first place.
Ronaldo return to Real Madrid?
Were Ronaldo to leave Juventus, a return to Real Madrid would perhaps be one of the viable options on the table.
And according to journalist and presenter of popular Spanish football talk show El Chiringuito, Josep Pedrerol, Cristiano’s agent, Jorge Mendes, has already made contact with Real Madrid to discuss the possibility of his return to the Bernabéu.
“Jorge Mendes has spoken with Real Madrid,” claimed Pedrerol in an “exclusive” report on El Chiringuito on Thursday night. “Jorge Mendes and Cristiano Ronaldo’s people have spoken about the possibility of the return of Cristiano.”
Pedrerol added, however, that Mendes’s contact with Madrid was “informal” in nature and stated that he was unaware if “Cristiano knows or doesn’t know” about the conversation. (Pederol's report, in Spanish, can be seen in the video at the top of this piece).
The return of Ronaldo would undoubtedly be a tantalizing prospect for Real Madrid fans – many of whom would echo the sentiments of the former Juve president Cobolli Gigli by claiming that it was a mistake for Madrid to have sold him in the first place.