Despite rumours tying Cristiano Ronaldo to a move to the club this summer, Napoli director Cristiano Giuntoli has explained why the Serie A team decided against making a move for him.
Following Manchester United's failure to earn a spot in the Champions League for this year, Ronaldo was determined to leave Old Trafford. He didn't really come close to leaving, though, and is currently lower on Manchester's totem pole.
The 37-year-name old's was mentioned in connection with a number of European clubs, most notably Chelsea and Bayern Munich, while Napoli appeared to emerge as a late candidate for his services.
Giuntoli has since dismissed this as speculation, though in an interview with Corriere dello Sport, he revealed why exactly Napoli weren’t in contention to sign Ronaldo anyway.
“During the transfer market we pretend to chat with everyone, and sometimes we do it for real – but we wanted to invest in a young team,” he said.
Napoli’s young stars – including Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen and Georgian winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia – put Liverpool to the sword on Wednesday evening, smashing the Reds 4-1 at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Ronaldo, meanwhile, made his first Europa League appearance since his Sporting CP days (and when it was known as the UEFA Cup) as United were beaten 1-0 at home by Real Sociedad on Thursday.