The Portuguese legend is 33 now and is certainly not growing any younger with time. However, his form does not drop any hint about his age and he is coming off a successful FIFA World Cup. Everything was running smoothly between him and the team from the Spanish capital. So, what tempted Ronaldo to leave Los Blancos, where he has earned monumental success, for La Vecchia Signora?

Let us have a look at four possible reasons which paved the way from Madrid to Turin:

#4 Unkept promises

One of the most important reasons behind Ronaldo’s decision to move out of Spain is possibly an unkept promise by the club president, Florentino Perez. After the 2016-17 UEFA Champions League final, Perez promised Ronaldo of an increment in his wages.

However, he later opted against it owing to Ronaldo’s poor run of form in the initial days of 2017-18 days.

Ronaldo kept waiting, whereas his contemporaries saw their pay cheques swell up. Lionel Messi was awarded a new FC Barcelona contract which paid him around €41 million annually, whereas PSG’s Neymar got €35 million. On the contrary, Ronaldo got only €21 million, almost half of Messi’s salary. Unsurprisingly, he was miffed at this.

#3 Real Madrid’s interest in Neymar

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has had his sight fixed on the Brazilian superstar Neymar for quite some time now. The ‘once upon a time’ wonderkid is now challenging the two best players world football currently possesses, Messi and Ronaldo, for the Ballon d’Or award.

When Ronaldo won the prestigious award, Perez said that the PSG player will have to join Real so as to get his hands on the coveted award. Again, Perez’s attitude possibly miffed Ronaldo and he didn’t quite like the rumours of Madrid being linked with Neymar, which were spreading like a forest fire.

Hence, the man from Madeira possibly concluded that his time was over and perhaps Real Madrid are looking for a new galactico.

#2 No trust with tax

Disputes regarding tax payments might not be much concrete a reason for the player to move out of Spain, but it might have played its part. Both Ronaldo and Messi were tied up tax issues in Spain. However, that case is put to bed as Ronaldo has agreed to pay over €18 million as fine.

Ronaldo perhaps felt a lack of backing from Real Madrid, as they publicly announced their support way back in 2016, but never again. Unlike Ronaldo, Messi had the support of FC Barcelona. Insecurity, as it seems, might be a reason Ronaldo did not want to be a part of Los Merengues more.

#1 Frustrated with the fans

Look somewhere else, Madridistas. The news of Cristiano Ronaldo, the heart-throb of Real Madrid fans being agitated with his own supporters were doing rounds in Spanish publications. Ronaldo was not in the form of his life during the initial stages of 2017-18 season. That not only cost him a promised contract, but also earned him some stick from the fans.

Ronaldo was booed by his very own supporters as the team was not doing what they are expected to do. It is understandable that he might have been saddened by this and felt that if not the club, the fans should back him, no matter what the outcomes of the games are.

He also felt a significant lack of urge from Real Madrid’s side to keep him in the club, with only the then manager Zinedine Zidane backing him. Hence a move was obvious.

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title: “4 Possible Reasons Why Cristiano Ronaldo Left Real Madrid” ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-07” author: “Willie Pon”

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has been at Real Madrid for nine seasons after joining from Manchester United for a then world-record fee of £80m.

During his stint, the Portuguese megastar notched up 451 goals in 438 appearances, breaking a host of records in the process. He also won 16 trophies during his time at the Santiago Bernabeu, including two La Liga titles, and two Copa del Rey crowns.

Ronaldo first hinted at a potential exit after Real Madrid accomplished their Champions League three-peat, making it a bittersweet affair for Madridistas.

And Serie A champions Juventus have exploited this opportunity to scoop up the Portugal captain, reportedly paying Ronaldo €30m a year.

Quite needless to say, Real Madrid have been dealt a significant blow with the announcement of Ronaldo’s sensational departure and it is intriguing to see who will fill his massive boots.

Also Read: 5 potential replacements for Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid

Here are the 4 possible reasons why Cristiano Ronaldo decided to bid adieu to the Spanish giants.

#4 The age factor

It goes without saying that Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the most hard-working and diligent players on the planet Earth, something that has helped him reach the pinnacle of football and stay there for as long as we can remember.

However, this doesn’t mean he is getting any younger. At the moment, Ronaldo is 33 years old, an age when the majority of footballers become a shadow of their former selves by entering the twilight of their career.

Although Cristiano Ronaldo has defied his age with back-to-back commendable performances, the former Real Madrid megastar showed signs of age catching up with him in the early part of the 2017-18 season.

In the early stages of the recently concluded season, the Portuguese struggled to create an impact on the pitch and looked out of his depth on several occasions. Although he made an impressive comeback afterwards, it would be unwise to turn a blind eye to his ageing figure.

The man is not red wine after all!

#3 He had accomplished everything in Spain

When Cristiano Ronaldo joined Real Madrid in 2009, the Spanish giants were living in the shadows of their arch-rivals FC Barcelona. Nevertheless, such was the level of the impact he made that the club went on to win innumerable major titles.

During his nine year successful spell at the Spanish capital, Ronaldo won the following titles:

2 x La Liga

2 x Copa Del Rey

2 x Spanish Super Cup

4 x UEFA Champions League

3 x UEFA Super Cup

3 x FIFA Club World Cup

As such, this was in all likelihood the best time to say goodbye to Real Madrid.

#2 He needed a new challenge

Make no mistake about it, Cristiano Ronaldo possesses an insatiable hunger for success and this is probably why he has opted to move to Italy after spending nearly a decade with Real Madrid.

With his shock move to Turin, Ronaldo will now have the chance to win his third different European league title. Besides who knows, he can even go on to break many other various records in the Serie A.

Of course, this is a sure fire decision in terms of achieving success.

#1 Difficult to please Real Madrid fans

Yes, Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the biggest names to have ever played for Real Madrid but that does not guarantee infinite support for him. Many a time the Portuguese heavyweight has been booed by his own fans at The Santiago Bernabeu.

The hoots even got to such levels that Ronaldo himself had to urge the fans to call a halt to the infamous activity.

It is a well established fact that Real Madrid fans are difficult to please, and when you take into account the club’s illustrious past and the superstars that have played for Los Blancos, it seems perfectly understandable.

Who knows, maybe this was one of the significant reasons why the former Manchester United star made a move to Turin.

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