Cristiano Ronaldo was told to not leave Real Madrid

Cristiano Ronaldo’s decision to leave Real Madrid in the summer of 2018 has proven to be the wrong one over the years. Back then, the Portuguese superstar appeared to be at the peak of his powers and was fresh off of three straight Champions League triumphs with Los Blancos, something which had never been achieved before.

There did not seem to be an end to Real Madrid’s era of dominance either, with most of their key players still very much in their primes. And a manager in Zinedine Zidane, who had not put a foot wrong since getting the Santiago Bernabeu job.

Yet, things went south when Ronaldo decided to leave Real Madrid and join Juventus in the summer of 2018. It was a move that caught many fans off-guard and since then, the Portuguese superstar’s career has been on a downward trajectory.

Now, it has emerged that Ronaldo was advised to remain at Real Madrid. As reported by El Mundo (via Mundo Deportivo), Jorge Mendes had said to him:

"“Stay at Real Madrid, you will be protected. If you go out it will be worse.”"

Ronaldo was advised to stay at Real Madrid by Mendes

Ronaldo has struggled to rediscover his best since leaving Real Madrid. His time at Juventus was filled with goals and silverware, but ultimately, those were the same trophies that the Italian giants had been winning consistently even before his arrival.

Their big target was believed to be winning the UEFA Champions League, something that they failed to do. In fact, they took a step back in Europe following Ronaldo’s arrival. And by his last season in Turin, they had lost their grip over the Serie A as well.

Ronaldo would leave Juventus for a blockbuster return to Manchester United, but we all know how that turned out. In fact, there are now question marks over the Portuguese icon’s legacy at Old Trafford, due to the manner of his exit.

Ronaldo currently finds himself at Al-Nassr, where even at 37 years of age, he is one of the highest paid athletes on the planet.