Ronaldo explains Sir Alex's transfer role
Cristiano Ronaldo has explained the pivotal role that ‘father figure’ Sir Alex Ferguson had in his decision to re-sign for Manchester United.
The 36-year-old’s return to Old Trafford was completed on Tuesday, 12 years after he left for Real Madrid and 18 years since he was originally brought to the club by Sir Alex.
Cristiano reserved a special postscript for our legendary former boss in his emotional Instagram post and it is clear the two have a very strong relationship.
In his first exclusive interview with club media since the move from Juventus, he expanded on the bond he has with the Scot.
Ferguson was the driving force in clinching Ronaldo’s signature as a teenager and, after overseeing his unstoppable rise to become the best footballer in the world, the pair remained in contact despite Cristiano departing for the Bernabeu in 2009.
Famously, Sir Alex waited to congratulate Ronaldo and his Portugal team-mates on winning the Euros in 2016, while he was also present at the 2017 Champions League final in Cardiff, when Los Blancos claimed their 12th European title, with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner centre stage.
Sir Alex Ferguson waiting proudly to congratulate Ronaldo after his Euro 2016 win was a special moment ❤️ pic.twitter.com/TWoAxBPAYl
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) August 29, 2021
There have been rumours in the press that our former manager must have reached out to Cristiano to convince him to re-sign and, with a smile on his face, the forward admitted Ferguson had been the biggest contributing factor in his decision.
“As everybody knows, since I signed for Manchester [United] at 18, Sir Alex Ferguson was the key,” Ronaldo told us.
“I remember when we played against Manchester when I was at Sporting Lisbon.
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“For me, Sir Alex Ferguson is like a father in football for me. He helped me a lot, he taught me many things, and in my opinion of course he had a big role because the relationship that we had, we keep in touch all the time, and he’s an unbelievable person.
“I really like him a lot and he was the main key for me to be in the position that I am, that I signed for Manchester United.”