"They have stolen 50 goals from my son" - When former Real Madrid manager's father blasted Los Blancos for Cristiano Ronaldo decision
Julen Lopetegui's father Jose Antonio slammed Real Madrid for their decision to sell Cristiano Ronaldo and not replace him in 2018. He said that while his son is happy with the players at his disposal, missing Ronaldo was a big deal.
Zinedine Zidane left Los Blancos as manager in 2018 after leading them to a three-peat in the UEFA Champions League. Hence, the pressure on the next manager was always going to be immense, with Julen Lopetegui named his replacement. However, the club also sold the prolific Ronaldo to Juventus for €100 million that summer.
Lopetegui's tenure at Real Madrid didn't go as he would've hoped and he was sacked in October 2018. After their 5-1 defeat against rivals Barcelona, the Spaniard's father Jose Antonio said in an interview with El Mundo (via The Independent):
“Cristiano Ronaldo was good. Was he cocky? We all have defects, but it turns out he scored 50 goals a season. He is missing. You are missing a prominent goalscorer. They haven't brought one, not a single one. There was talk of Neymar and others, but no one came. They have stolen 50 goals from my son.
"He has to settle with what he has and don't get me wrong, he is delighted with the players he has. He usually says: ‘I have great people, they give everything they've got.’ He doesn't blame the players. But when there is no material, there isn't. There was but he left.”
Cristiano Ronaldo is Real Madrid's all-time top goalscorer with 450 goals and 131 assists in 438 games.
Ex-Manchester United star claims Cristiano Ronaldo had agreed to return from Real Madrid in 2013
Former Manchester United left-back Patrice Evra has claimed that Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale had agreed on a transfer to Old Trafford in 2013. However, the club refused to pay the required £200 million.
Evra said in a recent interview:
"Sir Alex Ferguson said that Cristiano Ronaldo had agreed 99% to come back and Gareth Bale [to join]. He needed 200 million. And the club refused to gave him that money. This was in 2013."
Ronaldo had a stunning spell at Manchester United under Sir Alex Ferguson after joining the club from Sporting CP in 2003. He scored 118 goals and provided 62 assists in 292 games, winning numerous trophies, before joining Real Madrid in 2009. He did return to Old Trafford in 2021 under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer but left in November 2022.
Gareth Bale, meanwhile, joined Real Madrid from Tottenham Hotspur in 2013.