Man Utd signed Ronaldo in my back garden! - Lineker

England legend Gary Lineker claims that Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward signed Cristiano Ronaldo while in his back garden.

One of the headline moves of the summer saw Ronaldo switch Juventus for Old Trafford, sealing a return to the Red Devils over a decade after he originally left for Real Madrid.

Now, Lineker has revealed that at least part of the negotiations were carried out by Woodward from the former Tottenham striker's back garden.

What has Lineker said?

"I'll put my cards on the table," Lineker told BBC Sport: "Ed Woodward's a good friend of mine and he's my neighbour. He signed Ronaldo when he was in my garden!

"It was awesome. I knew when he walked in and he was on the phone to [Ronaldo's agent Jorge] Mendes or someone. I hope I'm not giving too much away here, but he did sign him, so... yeah!

"I've got a fantastic picture of him on the phone with him in the back garden, which I might share one day with his permission."

United under the microscope

Despite the addition of Ronaldo's undeniable talents, United have struggled to hit top form on a consistent basis this term.

A 2-1 loss to Young Boys in the Champions League was followed up with an unconvincing late win over Villarreal, while a Carabao Cup loss at the hands of West Ham was also suffered.

United sit fourth in the Premier League table after seven matches played, but questions are now being asked of the team's ability to stay in the race for the title following a failure to beat either Aston Villa or Everton at Old Trafford.

Indeed, the defeat to the Toffees in United's last game saw Ronaldo initially left on the bench, with Sir Alex Ferguson having been caught on video questioning Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's decision to leave the Portuguese out of his starting XI.

The Norwegian will have his chance to silence his critics after the international break, with a European double-header with Atalanta on the horizon alongside league clashes with Leicester, Liverpool and Tottenham.