It’s official. Cristiano Ronaldo will leave Real Madrid this summer and join Italian giants Juventus. In order to land Ronaldo, Juventus agreed to pay a transfer fee of approximately $117 million. Both clubs confirmed the news via their social media.
#GraciasCristiano pic.twitter.com/gMr9w9gQF0
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) July 10, 2018
@cristiano https://t.co/88xFtX3Xw4 #CR7Juve pic.twitter.com/nnG0N4074U
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) July 10, 2018
“Real Madrid would like to communicate that we have listened to the wish and request expressed by player Cristiano Ronaldo and have agreed to his transfer to Juventus FC,” – said Real Madrid in an official statement following the transfer.
Real Madrid did make a final push to convince Ronald to stay and offered him an improved contract, which would see the 33-year-old earning $64.5 million, compared to $45.2 million he was getting from his existing deal. The player still refused the offer in favor of moving to Italy.
“These years at Real Madrid and in this city of Madrid have quite possibly been the happiest years of my life,” – said Ronaldo in a statement. “I only have feelings of great gratitude to this club, to the fans and to the city. I can only give thanks to all of them for the love and affection that I have received. However, I feel that the time has come to begin a new stage of my life and that is why I have asked the club to accept my transfer. I feel it this way and I am asking everyone, and especially my fans, so please understand me.“
Cristiano Ronaldo joined Real Madrid in 2009 from Manchester United in a transfer worth around $100 million. During his time in Madrid, Ronaldo scored 450 goals in 438 appearances while winning numerous individual honors including four Ballon d’Or awards. He also helped Real win four Champions League titles and two La Liga trophies.
