Transfer: Manchester City open door to Ronaldo
Manchester City have opened their door for Cristiano Ronaldo following Harry Kane’s last-minute change of heart to stay with Tottenham Hotspur.
Kane has ended Guardiola’s transfer dream by confirming he will stay at Tottenham this summer as Manchester City continue to be linked with a sensational move for ex-Manchester United superstar Ronaldo
On Tuesday, Manchester City were insisting their focus remained signing Kane from Tottenham.
By lunchtime the following day, the rug was pulled from under City, with Kane’s public declaration he is staying at Spurs this summer, despite having agitated for a move.
It is understood City did not have prior knowledge of Kane’s decision to go public and end speculation over his future by committing his immediate future to Spurs, according to The Mirror.
But the unwillingness of Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy to even enter into talks with City about his star striker meant it did not come as a huge surprise.
City were not prepared to match Levy’s £150million valuation of Kane, considering it too high for a 28-year-old with little or no resale value, despite his profile and proven scoring prowess.
Although they wanted Kane and knew he was desperate to join them to take his career to the next level, Levy’s refusal to negotiate with City meant the deal never got off the ground.
Even though City won the Premier League by 12 points last season, effectively without a recognised striker given Aguero spent most of it a hostage to injury, Guardiola always wanted to recruit a forward this summer, with Kane his first-choice target.
Guardiola admitted as much after his side’s 5-0 win over Norwich last Saturday, acknowledging the goal threats he already has within his squad, but claiming City had an “obligation” to improve and evolve by singing better players.
But once the shutters came up from Levy, there was no chance of England skipper Kane being granted a move to the Etihad Stadium.
So what now for City? With a move for Kane, their first-choice target to replace record-breaking striker Aguero, now off the table, where do Guardiola and the City hierarchy look now?
Tellingly, City have refused to close the door on a short-term move for Cristiano Ronaldo, whose agent, Jorge Mendes, has been hawking his most famous client – currently at Juventus – around Europe’s top clubs.
Ronaldo is said to be open to a move to City, despite his past alliance with the red half of the city, having spent six years at Manchester United, where he announced himself as a superstar in world football.
Even at 36, Ronaldo remains a formidable player, an athlete in peak physical condition who could quite easily plunder 20-plus goals a season playing through the middle as a No.9 for City.