Florentino Perez Scoffs At Real Madrid Fan For Telling Him To "Sign Cristiano" Again

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has suggested that Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo is too old to rejoin the European champions.

Perez broke the world transfer record to bring Ronaldo to the Bernabeu in 2009 and the player rewarded him with 450 goals and 15 trophies in nine memorable seasons.

But Ronaldo's story with Real - although it will never be forgotten - is over, having ended in 2018.

Cristiano Ronaldo (left) and Florentino Perez pictured at an awards ceremony in 2017

IMAGO/Ulmer

The next chapter in Ronaldo's career looks uncertain.

Ronaldo wants to leave Old Trafford this summer to play in the UEFA Champions League but a suitable taker has not yet stepped forward.

Of course, Real are in the Champions League.

But while many nostalgia-fueled fans might love the idea of their former hero coming back, it does not make sense to businessman Perez.

This week Perez was caught on camera in a hotel lobby responding to a fan who had shouted at him: "Sign Cristiano."

Perez was walking though the hotel when he stopped in his tracks and scoffed in reply: "Again? He's 38-years-old!"

Ronaldo is actually 37 until February but Perez's point was clear.

Real already have one of the oldest starting XIs in Europe, with players like Karim Benzema, 34, and Luka Modric, 36 among their key men.

But Real's recent transfer policy has focussed on bringing in younger players - like Aurelien Tchouameni, 22, and Eduardo Camavinga, 19 - that are capable of replacing those established stars for many years to come.