One of our readers, Neil, wrote a thought inspiring comment recently and we feel that it would be appropriate to address some of his and your concerns in a post. You can find Neil’s comment here.
For The Record, we want Cristiano Ronaldo to stay in Manchester. With that said, we need to focus on Cristiano Ronaldo’s intentions and his motivation for wanting to leave for Madrid.
But First, does Cristiano Ronaldo owe Manchester his complete allegiance?
The question can be better answered by, “How does Manchester, or any other club, treat its players once they are past their prime?”
Manchester has always been willing to part ways with players they feel are expendable. Beckham, Keane, Nistelrooy and others were all disposed of without hesitation when they no longer fit into the team’s plans. Although this is speculative, we think that Cristiano undoubtedly realizes that if he stays and gives Manchester the best years of his career, in the end he is just as expendable as the others before him.
Second, is Cristiano Ronaldo backstabbing Man Utd fans by joining Real? Does he not honor the contracts that he signs?
We think that regardless of the circumstances, we will always feel betrayed. Never before has a player with his profile, and at the height of a blossoming career, ever demanded to leave Manchester United. It’s usually the other way around, Manchester dumps former stars. These circumstances will always make for bitter feelings. We think that even if it were just a one year contract, people would still feel betrayed. In any relationship, the truth hurts when it means that someone ends up being rejected.
Third, why didn’t he leave when he had a chance?
We speculate that he probably would have, had Real shown a genuine interest in him. Let’s not forget that playing for Madrid, whether we like it or not, has always been his dream. It’s obvious by statements that he’s made that he feels this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Who are we to tell him not to chase his dreams?
Lastly, nothing would give us greater joy than for Cristiano to play at least one more year at Manchester, though at this point it seems unlikely. Whatever his decision, we will continue to support him.
He’s following his dreams. I can’t fault anyone for following their dreams.