Real Madrid decided to sell their best player to Juventus for just €100 million. Some things happened behind the scenes as the club refused to give the attacker a new contract, but ultimately Ronaldo asked to leave and forced his way out of the club. Here’s why Real Madrid made the right decision.
- First of all, he didn’t want to play for Madrid anymore. It’s obvious. Some might say that he would’ve stayed had Los Blancos offered a better contract, but Madrid felt that Ronaldo had to honor the contract he signed and him being 33 years old made things even tougher. Florentino Perez and the rest of the board didn’t want to give Ronaldo such a significant raise at his age and with four more seasons left on his current deal. At the same time, Ronaldo felt he deserved to earn as much as Messi and Neymar. Both sides had their reasons and ultimately didn’t want to reach an agreement, so it was better to part ways.
- Ronaldo is past his prime and Real Madrid enjoyed every bit of it. Let’s face it, Ronaldo wore Madrid’s shirt for the last nine seasons and even though he was still scoring very relevant and crucial goals, he was not going to be peak Cristiano Ronaldo. Real Madrid signed that player for €94 million and sold a somewhat inferior version of him for €100 million. Ronaldo’s era is inexorably reaching its end and Madrid still made a profit.
- Dealing with Cristiano Ronaldo’s decline would’ve been problematic. Ronaldo’s ego is in part what made him the legend he is, but at the same time it would’ve been an issue during his decline. Ronaldo was probably never going to accept an inferior role and believe it or not some other players would’ve deserved to be starting ahead of him —or at least taking free-kicks— sooner or later. By selling him now, Real Madrid are escaping the issues Ronaldo’s decline would’ve caused, all while receiving €100 million.