Ronaldo

[Ole]

Has signed for Juventus for over £100 million.

It's been a strange year...

[Relly]

100 million for a 33 year old, and worth every penny. Crazy stuff, came out of nowhere after years of endless rumors. Good move for him, he can probably play on in Italy for 5 or 6 more years, coming back to England would have been a lot tougher on someone at that stage of their career.

Was never my favourite player, however I have immense respect for him as a professional and no doubt he is the greatest player of all time.

Now who is Real going to buy with all that money? Neymar? Mbappe?

[RedSte]

Both + Hazard and Kane

[Ole]

I can see them getting Mbappe but can't help but feel they'll aim for two high profile players.

[SUBXERO]

I'd say Neymar OR Mbappe+Hazard.

I read an article about Neymar and Mbappe not getting on with each other with the latter not fancying the idea of sharing a dressing room with the former anymore. Hiring Neymar would be a mammoth task, first and foremost financially, so I'm not sure if there would be any considerable room for one more signing of his calibre afterwards. The Galacticos era is gone and Perez seems to have finally realized that only a good team can win you trophies whereas a bunch of five-star players only sell shirts. They are looking for Ronaldo's heir and Neymar seems to fit the bill. Next priority for them should be rebuilding their ageing squad.

From the PSG perspective, I don't think they'd fancy the idea of losing both players to a main CL rival. Besides, should France win the WC I can see Mbappe getting a nationwide recognition and a legend status so I could imagine a club like PSG struggling to polish their image since the Arabs took over going all the way trying to keep his brightest (French) asset.

It's only the FFP which could cause them any problems and that's where my hopes lie. There is a rumour United were offering Martial plus lots of cash for Mbappe. Of course, that would be phenomenal if true. Time will tell. Dreams cost nothing, they say...

[Oranje]

Has signed for Juventus for over £100 million.

It's been a strange year...

Probably a good deal for all sides. Real get a lot of cash for a 33 year old, more cash than he would make them if he stayed there (all ronaldo fans have their Madrid jersey by now). Juventus sign a star who will sell a lot of shirts and will add quality to their team. And Ronaldo will win another league and be the best player in it.

Now I would have liked him to move to Napoli or Roma or another team that haven't won the Serie A in quite some time (pretty much all teams but Juve) to try to win them the league instead of Juventus.

[Dante]

It's Euros, not Pounds.

It's a good move personally for Ronaldo, but not good for Italian football.

[Oranje]

It's Euros, not Pounds.

It's a good move personally for Ronaldo, but not good for Italian football.

Why not?

[Relly]

To me it seems like it will raise the profile of Italian football. And good players tend to follow other good players.

[ivandaman]

May be after he wins a few Serie A titles and UCL leagues with Juventus he'll return to United at the age of 40 and helps us get back to glory days.

[Dante]

It's not good for Italian football because Juventus have won the league for the last seven seasons. They've also won the Coppa Italia for the last 4.

Bringing in a player like Ronaldo looks to be cementing that domination further.

[Relly]

It's not good for Italian football because Juventus have won the league for the last seven seasons. They've also won the Coppa Italia for the last 4.

Bringing in a player like Ronaldo looks to be cementing that domination further.

It will force the other teams to get better, that's how competition works.

[Sandies]

Not if you have owners who are content with 4th and CL qualification every year and the occasional cup run

[Oranje]

I'd say it's very good for Italian football. A lot of people who never watched it will be doing so because of Ronaldo, like Relly said it'll raise the profile of the Serie A. All clubs will profit from it I think.

And Juventus being too dominant is already a fact, that'll stay the same for now yeah.

[ArizonaRed]

I'd say it's very good for Italian football. A lot of people who never watched it will be doing so because of Ronaldo, like Relly said it'll raise the profile of the Serie A. All clubs will profit from it I think.

And Juventus being too dominant is already a fact, that'll stay the same for now yeah.

Or it could widen the gap between Juventus (who is pretty large already) and the rest, turning the Italian league into a one trick pony league.

[Oranje]

But that's my point, it already is a one trick pony league at the moment. Ronaldo is 33 and won't have more than 2/3 good seasons in him I'd say? So the gap between Juve and the other teams will probably remain for the seasons to come but that's not a new thing and was pretty likely even without Ronaldo.

It'll draw more fans and other good players to the Italian league so I'd be very happy as an Italian football fan. If this happens I can see a few Italian sides raising their game as well and challenging Juventus in a few years.

[ArizonaRed]

While I think you are right that Ronaldo might get a few extra viewer for Juventus I just do not see a PL or Le Liga or Bundesliga supporter going out of their way to watch Cagliari vs Bologna on a Saturday. The top six clubs may get some extra viewer when they go head to head, but overall I do not see the league (all 20 teams) benefitting from Ronaldo's presence.

[Oranje]

While I think you are right that Ronaldo might get a few extra viewer for Juventus I just do not see a PL or Le Liga or Bundesliga supporter going out of their way to watch Cagliari vs Bologna on a Saturday. The top six clubs may get some extra viewer when they go head to head, but overall I do not see the league (all 20 teams) benefitting from Ronaldo's presence.

With the exception of maybe the Premier League, there is no other league where the equivalent of 'Cagliari vs Bologna' draws a lot of (international) viewers... I don't tend to stay at home to watch Augsburg vs Mainz and Leganes vs Eibar on a saturday either (any day to be honest ).

The whole league benefits because more people will watch and follow the Serie A because of Ronaldo, other good players are more likely to move to the Serie A, sponsors are more likely to invest because of growing exposure and in the end even Bologna and Cagliari will benefit because of increased income from TV-rights (they share it), sponsors etc. etc. I agree that the top 6 will probably benefit most/first.

[Relly]

Can't say I am going out of my way to watch Crystal Palace vs Burnley.

[Dante]

It's not good for Italian football because Juventus have won the league for the last seven seasons. They've also won the Coppa Italia for the last 4.

Bringing in a player like Ronaldo looks to be cementing that domination further.

It will force the other teams to get better, that's how competition works.

Like in Scotland?