Juventus have bid farewell to Cristiano Ronaldo as they confirmed a €23 million (£20m//$27m) deal with Manchester United for the transfer of the attacker.
The 36-year-old has spent three years with the Serie A side and lifted two league titles, but has opted to head back to Old Trafford amid Bianconeri’s recent failure to compete for major trophies.
Ronaldo looked to be heading to Manchester City initially, but the Red Devils swooped in to snap him up and confirmed an agreement on Friday.
“On 10 July 2018, two icons of the European and football world came together – Cristiano Ronaldo became a Juventus player. Today, after three years together and 133 appearances, 101 goals scored and five trophies won, that chapter has come to an end…. The paths of CR7 and Juventus have gone their separate ways.
On that day in July, when Cristiano arrived in Turin, the electric feeling of those great days could be felt through the air. The Juventus fans welcomed CR7 like a king, eager to see him on the pitch and cheer with him. It was a great story.
His firsts left us impressed: the first outing at Villar Perosa, where tradition and the desire to write a wonderful future came together, the first official match in Verona against Chievo, and of course, his first goal, the first iconic “Siuuu” that echoed around the Allianz Stadium against Sassuolo. Then, there were the first trophies won together: the first Super Cup, obviously decided by him, the first Scudetto title, and this year, the first Italian Cup. But that’s not all, he also finished for the first time in Italy as the league’s top scorer. Then there were the broken records – lots of them.
“He was the first player in Juventus history to score at least 100 goals in all competitions in his first three seasons with Juventus, and since his arrival in Serie A, he has scored more goals than any other player: 81, at least 10 more than any other. Not only that, with the aforementioned title of top scorer, he also become the first to sit on the throne of the top goalscorers in Serie A, LaLiga and the Premier League.”
“The unforgettable moments experienced together were many. We could recite them and relive them, but it would not help, because everyone has their own special memory linked to CR7. Everyone has a shared emotion that does not need to be dusted off, because everyone will always remember what they felt in walking this stretch of road together.”
“Today that bond born on July 10, three years ago, has been dissolved, but what has been written will forever remain. It has been an incredible journey.”
United will pay a fee of €15m (£13/$18m) over the course of five years to seal the Portugal star’s return to the Premier League, Juventus confirmed. They will have to pay up to €8m (£7m/$9m) in bonuses “upon achievement of specific performance objectives”.
The deal will appear as a €14m (£12m/$17m) loss for the Turin side in the 2020-21 financial year, the club reported.
