Cristiano Ronaldo transfer rumors: Zidane reached out to convince Real Madrid star to stay

By Sports Illustrated and Chris Chavez/Sports Illustrated via Planet Futbol
Published

Cristiano Ronaldo is currently playing with Portugal in the Confederations Cup but the transfer rumors continue to swirl of a possible departure from Real Madrid.

Reports surfaced that Ronaldo wants to leave the club due to allegations that he defrauded the country's tax authorities. Last week, a Spanish state prosecutor accused Ronaldo of four counts of tax fraud from 2011-14 which totaled about $16.5 million. Portuguese sports daily A Bola then reported that Ronaldo was planning on leaving Madrid and it would be an "irreversible" decision.

Ronaldo has spent the past few days going through his normal routine of practicing and playing with his teammates on the national team, and he skipped the post-game media session after Portugal's 2-2 draw with Mexico.

Last year, Real Madrid signed Ronaldo to a contract extension that would keep him with the team through June 2021, and his agent claims that his buyout clause is over $1 billion, which clearly limits the realistic suitors.

Here are some of the latest rumors regarding Ronaldo:

• Spanish newspaper Marca reports that Zinedine Zidane spoke to Ronaldo and passed along praise while hoping to convince the star to stay. The report says that Zidane told Ronaldo that the team "could go on to win plenty more and that they needed him for his goals, but also his winning mentality." Zidane reportedly will continue to do what it takes throughout the summer to keep Ronaldo in the Spanish capital. 

• On Sunday, Sky Sports reported that Ronaldo may have some interest in returning to Manchester United but there is caution on the club's end regarding the transfer. Real Madrid also has its eyes on David De Gea, while United has been linked heavily with a move for Real's Alvaro Morata, which could make a deal a more intricate, layered process.

• Don't include Bayern Munich in any discussion for potential landing spots. Club CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge was quite clear on Bayern's stance, saying: “We are accustomed to speculating intensively on possible ins and outs during the transfer period. As a rule, we do not comment on these rumours. But now, in the case of Cristiano Ronaldo, we want to clarify once and for all that this rumour has no basis and must be referred to the realm of the fable.”