Jose Mourinho rejected the chance to sign Cristiano Ronaldo during his time at Old Trafford despite being offered the chance to sign the Portuguese superstar.
The 37-year-old striker returned to Manchester United this summer, but there was a chance of coming back to Old Trafford in 2018, while he was playing for Real Madrid.
But according to a report in Sports Bible, Mourinho was not interested in the deal. The former Chelsea coach had previously worked with Ronaldo for three years in Real Madrid, and according to Jim White, former Man United vice-chairman Ed Woodward wanted to broker a deal that would reunite both parties. But Mourinho was not interested.
Speaking to talkSPORT, White said: “Over the years, there have been many discussions over Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United.
“It might have happened when he finished at Real Madrid when he was still in his pomp.
“But it wasn’t possible because Jose Mourinho made it clear he at that time had other priorities.”
Ronaldo moved to Juventus that summer instead. And he spent three years at the Allianz Stadium before returning to England last August.
Meanwhile, that summer, Mourinho had just taken Manchester United to second in the Premier League table and was desperate for the club to sign a central defender. Atletico Madrid’s Diego Godin, Leicester’s Harry Maguire, Tottenham’s Toby Alderweireld and Bayern Munich’s Jerome Boateng were top priority for Mourinho, who felt that a central defender was of more importance than a striker at the time.
United eventually signed Fred and Diogo Dalot that summer before a poor start to the season saw Mourinho sacked in December.
