Report: Ronaldo wanted Napoli

By Football Italia staff

There is an extraordinary report that Cristiano Ronaldo wanted to join Napoli, but only opted for Juventus when Aurelio De Laurentiis refused.

Carlo Alvino is a TV Luna reporter who is close to Napoli and was one of the first to break the news of negotiations with new Coach Carlo Ancelotti.

He claimed this evening that Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo very nearly ended up at the Stadio San Paolo instead of the Juventus Stadium and the story also appeared in the Corriere dello Sport.

“Cristiano Ronaldo would be wearing the Napoli jersey today if the club had been able to spend €350m,” said Alvino.

“Juve were Plan B for the Portuguese star. Jorge Mendes has a strong rapport with Napoli and President De Laurentiis. The agent offered him to Napoli, but as they wouldn’t pay that much, he turned to Juve instead.”

Ronaldo left Real Madrid for €112m and has signed a contract worth €30m per year with Juventus.

Napoli would've meant a reunion with his former Real Madrid boss Ancelotti, as the two remain close.

It had been widely reported Ronaldo phoned Ancelotti to ask for advice on adapting to Serie A football.

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