Cristiano Ronaldo’s shock claim that he could leave Real Madrid was reportedly met with ‘absolute bewilderment’ by his club and teammates.
According to AS, the ‘bomb’ dropped by Ronaldo as soon as Madrid beat Liverpool 3-1 to win the Champions League on Saturday ‘spoiled’ the Final and ‘caused a deep malaise’, with his colleagues agreeing ‘it wasn’t the day’ to make such a declaration.
The newspaper explains the No 7 is unhappy with his contract, given Lionel Messi earns almost double his arch-rival’s €22m salary and Neymar pockets €37m after tax at Paris Saint-Germain.
Los Blancos would have assumed the Portuguese was prepared to negotiate a new deal at the end of the season, leaving them ‘unable to understand’ the timing of his bombshell.
Madrid also happened to lift their third-straight Champions League and fourth in five years, as well as doing so for a record-breaking 13th time and securing a European double in football and basketball for the first time ever.
AS reiterates ‘the untimeliness of his announcement hurt more than the message itself’ and concludes by noting the 33-year-old may elect to address the fans during Los Merengues’ celebrations on Sunday.
