That’s why the drums have been beating all summer suggesting a move away from Manchester United, though there are two fundamental hurdles here.

One is money. It’s tight (almost) everywhere, and even with the 25% reduction in wages that automatically kicked in when United failed to qualify for the Champions League last year, and even with the option of United letting him move for free, his annual salary would remain in the $25m range, which simply means he’d be out of reach for most. Still, with a bit of bullet-biting, that can be overcome.

The other is tougher. Most top clubs have, for lack of a better word, “system” managers at the helm and most employ many of the concepts Ten Hag wants to employ, from Pep Guardiola at Manchester City to Julian Nagelsmann at Bayern Munich and Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool. These are guys with long-term vision who stick to what got them there: they’re not going to disassemble their setup and change to a system that gets the best out of Ronaldo.

There are actually very few potential landing places, clubs that employ more pragmatic managers and might, at a stretch, have the means to afford him. PSG, with Christophe Galtier newly installed as coach and Luis Campos as sporting director might have been one, but not with Kylian Mbappe staying alongside Neymar and Lionel Messi. Ronaldo has been linked with Atletico Madrid, possibly because of Mendes’ ties to the club, but they already have plenty of options (Alvaro Morata, Antoine Griezmann, Joao Felix, Matheus Cunha) in the striker department and in any case, the marriage of Ronaldo and Diego “Cholo” Simeone seems a stretch.

So why not take the process of elimination to its natural conclusion and suggest … a return to Real Madrid?

Ronaldo would get Champions League football and therefore an even bigger stage. He spent a decade at the club and was very open to rejoining them last summer. There’s genuine affection between him and coach Carlo Ancelotti, and Ancelotti himself is a pragmatist who isn’t wed to any one system. It’s not the ideal tactical fit, but if there’s a guy who can make it work, it’s Ancelotti. And, of course, between the club missing out on Mbappe last month and Gareth Bale leaving, there’s cash available. Ronaldo’s relationship with club president Florentino Perez has been up and down over the years, but Florentino isn’t the type of guy who holds grudges (just ask Ancelotti).

Ronaldo might not get to start every game, but with a World Cup in November coming up (and the post-World Cup fallout), that might suit him just fine. Karim Benzema might have to adjust his game a little bit, dropping deeper when Ronaldo comes inside, but if last season is anything to go by, that’s certainly not a problem for him. (Plus, it’s what he did for years playing Robin to his Batman when they were teammates.)

These days, Ronaldo is at his best starting out wide with a hardworking central striker through the middle. Benzema’s backups — Mariano Diaz and Borja Mayoral, assuming the latter stays — are nothing to write home about and obviously can’t do much of what Benzema does, but in a pinch they can offer the grunt work in order to let Ronaldo do his thing.

Vinicius might have to switch flanks, but at his age, that’s not a big ask. It would take away from the minutes destined for the trio of Rodrygo, Eden Hazard and Marco Asensio, but that’s not a big deal and would have happened anyway if Mbappe had signed. Besides, Rodrygo is still just 22, Hazard’s fitness is a perpetual doubt, and Asensio, who has a year left on the deal (and funny how these things work out, is also represented by Mendes), could be on the move anyway.

It’s just a scenario, something that would be fun to see as a fan. If it happens, expect it to come at the very end of the window. If United start well under Ten Hag (or if they’re terrible), if Ronaldo takes a pay cut and agrees to a short-term deal … why not?

(ESPN)