‘He Thought About It’—Cristiano Ronaldo’s Reason for Club World Cup Snub Revealed

Cristiano Ronaldo had several chances to play at this summer’s Club World Cup.

Cristiano Ronaldo turned down the chance to feature this summer. / IMAGO/ZUMA Press Wire

Cristiano Ronaldo rejected the chance to play at this summer’s Club World Cup in order to prepare himself for the upcoming season, according to River Plate manager Marcelo Gallardo, who failed with an offer to bring the Portugal international to the tournament.

After weeks of speculation over a possible transfer with the sole intention of playing at the Club World Cup, Ronaldo publicly revealed he would not make such a move, despite receiving offers to.

Wydad Casablanca’s president has admitted to making one of those proposals, and now Gallardo has confessed he also tried to recruit Ronaldo for the Club World Cup.

Watch the FIFA Club World Cup live and on-demand here

“In mid-March, informally, through a mutual friend, I said to [Ronaldo], ‘Hey, I have a Club World Cup coming up and for a player like you, who marked an era...don’t you intend to play in it?’” Gallardo told ESPN.

Gallardo was among those to contact Ronaldo. / IMAGO/NurPhoto

“Not only did he feel recognized, but he evaluated it, thought about it, but then replied, ’I have to prepare for next season.’”

Asked why he made the offer, Gallardo continued: “If he bit, he bit. And look how informal the contact was, he made it his business to make it public, because otherwise this would never have been known, like many things that aren’t known and other things that are said and are lies.

“He made it his business to say it and he didn’t even mention the club. He said, ‘They invited me from Argentina.’”

Among the rumors revolving around Ronaldo was a possible switch within Saudi Arabia. The Al Nassr star was tipped to join domestic rivals Al Hilal, either on loan or permanently, but the latter’s CEO recently insisted there was no truth to the speculation.

We may earn a commission if you buy something via a link in this article

---

READ THE LATEST CLUB WORLD CUP NEWS, PREVIEWS AND ANALYSIS

feed