Cristiano Ronaldo scored an awesome free-kick over the weekend against Manchester City, but this exquisite opener isn’t what caught the media’s attention.

Instead, the hot-tempered 24-year-old World Player of the Year grabbed the headlines for his petulant behavior while being substituted later on in the game, while speculations over his Manchester United
future arose again.

With Florentino Perez almost destined to become Real Madrid’s next president this coming month of June, transfer talks about Cristiano Ronaldo switching from World Champions Manchester United to Spanish side Real Madrid haven’t been ruled out, despite the Portuguese confirming that his Madrid dream was dead.

We’ve seen Ronaldo screaming at referees and swearing to the skies time and again this season, giving reason to the media to portray him as an unhappy man at Old Trafford. At 24, Ronaldo has got everything a club player could wish for; Money flows from his pockets, while trophies and individual awards are not rare for him and his Mancunian club.

It is obviously simple to seat back and think: Why would someone like Ronaldo opt to join a disgraced and wounded Real Madrid side where there’ll be some intense pressure to perform and influence the whole of the squad to find back its high standards? The Galacticos are yet to impose their authority on the rampant Catalans Barcelona FC who damaged their season.

Either way, speculations are still ongoing and it is believed that Ronaldo could leave this summer for a fee of € 80 million. On the other hand, some rumors also explain that Real Madrid might pay only € 30 million to sign Ronaldo without forgetting that the deal would also see Real Madrid presenting Manchester United with the choice of buying one of their Spanish Giants’ players. It also expected that Ronaldo will earn an astronomical amount of € 13 million should he play for the 2008 La Liga Champions.

Perhaps these speculations are all false, just something to please the curious media! However, it is also true that Cristiano Ronaldo’s harsh behavior against Manchester City – when he had to come off as a substitute – seems to reveal that the relationship between Cristiano Ronaldo and Sir Alex Ferguson isn’t that healthy.

Reports suggest that Ferguson didn’t confront Ronaldo after the match, and if the 67-year-old Scot described Ronaldo’s attitude as a positive one that shows the player’s motivation to play, the rest of Manchester United’s squad weren’t please at all with what happened.

A source was quoted as saying in The Sun:

“A number were unhappy about Ronaldo’s behaviour and told him so,”

“A lot of these players have grown up with Alex Ferguson as their manager and do not like seeing anyone show him disrespect.”

Further reports explain that Ronaldo finally gave in and consequently admitted his mistake after his team-mates blasted him in the dressing rooms. Was Ronaldo really repenting from his actions or was he only trying to cool down everyone’s temper?

The Portuguese Star winger all the same featured against Wigan Athletic in midweek and is expected to play in Manchester United’s three remaining matches of the season.

What if Cristiano Ronaldo’s game against Barcelona in the Champions League final in Rome is the Golden Boy’s last appearance under a Red Devil jersey? It could mean the end of an era in the tale of the mesmerizing number 7 jersey.

Written by: Angela Asante