Maradona claims Florentino Perez sold Cristiano Ronaldo for 'only getting a goal a game'
What's the story?
Argentine legend Diego Maradona has given his verdict on why Real Madrid sold their star Cristiano Ronaldo, claiming that it was because the Portuguese ace only scored a goal per game.
In case you didn't know...
Cristiano Ronaldo moved away from the Bernabeu in a staggering €100 million transfer to join Serie A giants Juventus over the summer.
The reasons for his departure were unknown until last month when the Portuguese opened up about his move in an interview with France Football.
The former Real Madrid star said (via The Guardian), "I felt it inside the club, especially from the president, that they no longer considered me the same way that they did in the start."
"In the first four or five years there I had the feeling of being ‘Cristiano Ronaldo’. Less afterwards. The president looked at me through eyes that didn’t want to say the same thing, as if I was no longer indispensable to them, if you know what I mean."
“That’s what made me think about leaving. Sometimes I’d look at the news, where they were saying I was asking to leave. There was a bit of that but the truth is I always had the impression the president would not hold me back. If it had all been about money, I’d have moved to China, where I would have earned five times as much than here [at Juventus] or at Real. I did not come to Juve for the money. I earned the same in Madrid, if not more. The difference is that, at Juve, they really wanted me. They told me that and made it clear."
The heart of the matter
Maradona has now given his verdict on Ronaldo's move in an exclusive interview with Marca, claiming that Real president Florentino Perez did not want the Juventus star anymore because he was only "getting a goal a game".
Speaking about the move, Maradona said, "I think that it was a good move for Cristiano. He gave his all to Madrid, he wasn't enjoying it as much as he does now in Italian football and Florentino is always planning. When he saw Ronaldo was only getting a goal a game he sold him."
When asked if Real misses Ronaldo, he added, "Clearly yes but I always say that a player doesn't make a club. Madrid will recover, they will win again, they have a great squad but the truth is that CR7 continues to score goals and people will say why was he sold. I always say that Florentino is clever and if he let him go it was for a reason."
What's next?
As the international break is here, Ronaldo's Portugal will go up against Italy in a UEFA Nations League game on Sunday.
Ronaldo will return to league action when Juventus face SPAL in a Serie A game on November 24.