Why did Cristiano Ronaldo leave Juventus

Just a few weeks after Lionel Messi, now it's Cristiano Ronaldo's turn to switch clubs. The two biggest stars in global football are joining new teams in the same transfer window after Manchester United confirmed that it had acquired Ronaldo from Italian giants Juventus. The club announced the move just hours after Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri revealed that Ronaldo told him he would not be playing for Juventus again. The player cleared out his farewell to his teammates on Friday, before reportedly hopping on a plane. And just like that, with a year remaining on his contract at Juventus, the 36-year-old Ronaldo will be returning to the club where he became a world star during his six seasons from 2003 through 2009. It's a stunning turn of events, given that earlier in the same day it was believed that Manchester City was still in pole position to sign the Portuguese star, only for the Red Devils to And just a week before, it sounded like he would be seeing out his contract at Juventus. Why did Ronaldo leave Juventus? Juventus is once again the favourite to win the Italian league title in the season that just started, and the club is also expected to make a deep run into the UEFA Champions League competition. So why would Ronaldo leave one of the most storied clubs in Europe? Although Ronaldo has delivered in a big way since arriving at Juventus, both on and off the field, his departure works out for both player and club. Why a move made sense for Ronaldo? Although Juventus has elite talent, it's clear that the club is not on the same level as Chelsea, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich in the race to win the UEFA Champions League. Ronaldo is a five-time Champions League winner, and with two more titles, he would set the all-time record for European club championships for a player. At 134 goals and counting, he already has the most goals of any player in the history of the competition. Ronaldo cares about his brand and legacy, and he wants to go down as the greatest of all time. If he can spend the next two or three seasons with a team that can help him win the big trophy and outshine Messi and PSG, he could yet shape the narrative about how he will be remembered. It wasn't going to happen at Juventus. From the Juventus perspective, Ronaldo is a goal-scoring machine, and he was the top scorer in Serie A last season, 29 goals. His 101 goals in 134 games for Juve, the fastest player to reach 100 goals in club history, helped Juventus win all three domestic titles during his time at the club. But the Turin-based side didn't spend $120 million to acquire Ronaldo in 2018 to win in Italy. The Bianconeri were hoping Ronaldo would get them over the hump and win their first UEFA Champions League since 1996. It hasn't happened. Three different coaches in three seasons did not help, and Juventus suffered shock knockout round exits in each of the three seasons, never reaching the semifinals. Reports suggest that Ronaldo took the round of 16 elimination to Porto in March especially hard, and less than six months later, he's on his way out. There are also off-the-field considerations. Given the revenue challenges brought on by COVID-19, an estimated $235 million budget deficit this season, and Ronaldo's $100 million a year cost to the club, between his salary and the amortization of his transfer fee, moving on also makes sense from a financial standpoint. The Ronaldo acquisition in 2018 no doubt helped alleviate the Juventus brand. The club has a higher international profile, double the social followers, and it leveraged Ronaldo for significant increases in its revenues and partnerships. But the pandemic changed the financial outlook for the club, and on the field, Juventus is resetting and going younger. The timing for a Ronaldo transfer worked across the board. Here was Ronaldo's Instagram farewell message to fans. Today I depart from an amazing club, the biggest in Italy, and surely one of the biggest in all of Europe. I gave my heart and soul for Juventus, and I'll always love the city of Turin until my final days. The Tio Fossi, Bianconeri always respected me, and I tried to thank that respect by fighting for them in every game, every season, every competition. In the end, we can all look back and realize that we achieved great things. Not all that we wanted, but still, we wrote a pretty beautiful story together. Juve, storia di un grande amor, Bianco ce abaccia il nero, coro ce si alza davvero, Juve per sempre sarà. I will always be one of you. You are now part of my history, as I feel that I am a part of yours. Italy, Juve, Turin, Tio Fossi, Bianconeri, you'll always be in my heart.