Cristiano Ronaldo targeting Champions League return
Real Madrid winger Cristiano Ronaldo is said to be targeting the club’s first UEFA Champions League group stage match to make his return from injury.
The 25-year-old Portuguese international suffered an injury to his ankle in the La Liga giants’ first match of the new campaign against Real Mallorca. Doctors had predicted the superstar would be on the sidelines for at least three weeks, but he is bidding to beat that timeline by featuring for his club a week ahead of schedule to feature in the match against Ajax next week.
Spanish daily newspaper AS has reported that Ronaldo is well on his way to making a full recovery and may even be able to return to full training under head coach Jose Mourinho this week.
Most expensive player
Ronaldo has been at the Bernebau since the summer of 2009 when he made a high-profile transfer from Manchester United. Madrid paid a fee of around 94 million euros (£80m), making him the most expensive football player of all time. He is also the highest-paid footballer on the planet as he will receive around £11m for each of the six years he will spend with the Spanish side.
Although he enjoyed a successful first season in Madrid on a personal level — having scored 33 goals in 35 matches — he failed to win any silverware as Barcelona won the league title, as Sevilla won the Copa del Rey and Inter Milan were triumphant in the Champions League.
His transfer came on the back of an enormously successful spell with United, where he developed into one of the finest players on the planet and picked up every major trophy it was possible to win. Ronaldo was named FIFA World Player of the Year in 2008, while he also picked up the Ballon d’Or that same year.
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