Ronaldo linked to shock move to French side Marseille

Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo applauds at the end of their Premier League match against Liverpool at Old Trafford stadium, in Manchester on Aug. 22, 2022. (AP)

• Liverpool’s ex-striker Djibril Cisse took to social media in bid to lure Ronaldo to France
• French club’s president vehemently denies reports linking them to Manchester United star

DUBAI: Conflicting media reports linking Manchester United’s Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo to European clubs on Friday continued to surface with the latest relating him to France’s Ligue 1 side Marseille.
European media have suggested that last season’s second-place league finishers Marseille have been conducting a financial study to determine what Ronaldo could bring to the French club.
Former Marseille player Jean-Charles De Bono said: “A study is being carried out to find out what Ronaldo could bring to the club financially.”
Mail Online said Liverpool’s ex-striker Djibril Cisse took to social media in a bid to lure Ronaldo to Marseille for the current season.
However, Sports Brief reported Marseille President Pablo Longoria as vehemently denying rumors that his club was looking to sign the Portuguese forward.
With the 37-year-old star reportedly keen to leave the English Premier League to join a Champions League-playing football club, Ronaldo has been linked with several top-tier teams including Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Atletico Madrid, Napoli, and Chelsea.
If a deal goes through ahead of the summer transfer market’s deadline on Sept. 1, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner would fulfil his wish to play this year’s Champions League competition with Marseille against his former club Sporting Lisbon in the group stage.
In a tweet on Wednesday, Cisse said: “Cristiano come my friend I will look after you.”
Germany’s Bild reported that any transfer for the player would bring with it a massive increase in sponsorship deals and TV viewership.
Having played in the top leagues in Portugal, Spain, Italy, and England, a move to France’s Ligue 1 would see Ronaldo compete in a fifth European league, becoming one of few players to do so.
Meanwhile, Manchester United’s newly appointed head coach Erik ten Hag has repeatedly maintained that Old Trafford’s No. 7 was not for sale.
However, Ronaldo was not in the starting lineup to face arch-rivals Liverpool on Monday and instead remained on the bench until the closing minutes of the game that United won 2-1.
According to Sports Brief, Longoria stressed that CR7 (Ronaldo) will not be joining the French club this summer and denied all reports of a surprise move.
Football news platform 90min reported Longoria as saying, “it’s the social media world full of fake news. We want reality. The Ronaldo deal is not for us.”