As per a report by Sam Lee and Pol Ballus of the Athletic, Pep Guardiola may not have seen out his contract till 2023 at Manchester City if the Cristiano Ronaldo was signed last season.
With the Sky Blues’ need for a successor to Sergio Aguero, who had departed the club, it seemed like Ronaldo was destined to join the club.
However, Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano famously revealed last summer that the Premier League champions had decided to step aside from the negotiations to sign the veteran.
Instead, the 37-year-old ended up returning to Manchester United and the storied comeback proved to be a nightmare for all parties.
As the Athletic have reported that Guardiola has agreed to sign a brand-new contract extension till 2025, none other than the former Real Madrid superstar could well have ended his love affair with Manchester City.
How Ronaldo could have led to Guardiola’s Manchester City exit
The Athletic’s Pol Ballus and Sam Lee have reported that senior sources at City believe that Pep Guardiola would have not stayed at the club till 2023, had Cristiano Ronaldo been signed in the summer of 2021.
And assessing how much of a misfit the Portuguese legend has been in a side trying to play progressive football, he would have been the anthesis of a Guardiola forward.
The ageing No.9’s lack of pressing, shoddy link-up play, poor positional sense and wayward finishing have been indicators of him being past his devastating best since returning to England.
All’s well that ends well for City and Guardiola, as the failure to sign Ronaldo eventually led to the arrival of Erling Haaland, as well as the Catalan boss staying put at the club.
