Cristiano Ronaldo refused La Liga transfer return due to fears of fan backlash

Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Manchester United in the final week of the transfer window was arguably the biggest deal of the summer.

It was a remarkable transfer that was concluded in less than 24 hours to take the Portuguese superstar back to Old Trafford after 12 years away.

Yet the destination of the 36-year-old was never certain to be United and indeed Manchester City were actively pursuing a transfer before an awareness that their city rivals were manoeuvring a deal.

Ronaldo wanted to leave Juventus, but the potential destination list was a relatively slim one due to the player's wage demands and the financial ramifications of the pandemic.

Cristiano Ronaldo helped Real Madrid to win four Champions League titles in nine seasons ( Image:

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The forward's agent Jorge Mendes is renowned throughout football for his ability to make deals happen and he was intent on securing a new club for his most prestigious client this summer.

It has now been revealed by Spanish radio station Cadena Ser's Carrusel show that Mendes even attempted to pull of an audacious move for Ronaldo to return to La Liga.

The most surprising aspect of this was that it was not Real Madrid who Mendes was in talks with, but their fierce city rivals Atletico Madrid.

Diego Simeone's side won last season's La Liga title and would end up bolstering their attacking ranks this summer with the arrivals of Matheus Cunha and Antoine Griezmann respectively.

It has now been revealed that they rejected the possibility of signing Ronaldo on the basis that he was a club legend at their city rivals and his arrival would not be received positively by their fanbase.

Interestingly, Atletico had been one of several Spanish clubs who had been monitoring Ronaldo's progress as a teenager at Sporting Lisbon and missed out on his signing when he joined Manchester United in 2003.

The opportunity for Los Rojiblancos to sign the player, now aged 36, seems like a fanciful proposition and as unlikely as it may have been - there were allegedly primitive discussions held over such a possibility.

Ronaldo is the all-time club record goal scorer at Real Madrid, where he netted a barely believable 450 goals in 438 appearances.

Spanish TV channel La Sexta's El Chiringuito show - which has gained notoriety in the international media this year due to its outlandish reporting and dramatic football coverage - reported earlier this summer that there were talks to bring him back to Real Madrid.

Ancelotti took to Twitter to write: "Cristiano is a Real Madrid legend and he has all my love and respect. I have never considered signing him. We are looking forward. #HalaMadrid"

After a summer of speculation regarding Ronaldo's future, the Portuguese forward eventually concluded his return to Old Trafford at the end of August.

He has made an instant impact in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side, scoring four goals in his opening three matches for the club including in Sunday's victory at West Ham.