No need to Ron off

Wallace: message is getting through

You'd like to think that maybe in the next few years Ronaldo might just become a little bit more self-aware and maybe the things he is saying now and talking logically about where United are going suggest he is maturing a little bit.

Sam Wallace
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Sam Wallace says Cristiano Ronaldo's insistence that he plans to stay at Manchester United shows the player in a more mature light.

The 24-year-old has given United the perfect lift ahead of Wednesday's Champions League final against Barcelona by saying he sees his future at Old Trafford rather than Real Madrid.

His comments come after the Spanish giants were once again linked with the Portuguese international, but the Independent's Wallace told the Sunday Supplement that this time there is more reason than ever to believe Ronaldo will stay where he is.

"This is not the first time that he has been quoted saying that he is staying and it does seem to be gathering a bit of momentum," said Wallace.

"I do feel that he's realised what everyone else has been saying for the last six months, which is 'why leave a club that has been in the European Cup final for two seasons in a row just because the city that they are in happens to be a bit rainy'?

"I think someone has obviously got through to him - (Sir Alex) Ferguson possibly - but he is also getting a little bit older, isn't he and he's trying to make a long-term judgement.

"I still think he will go at some point and that he will not play for Manchester United for his entire career. He also knows that Alex Ferguson isn't going to be there for another five years.

"He's probably realised that there is more than a small rebuilding job at Real Madrid. If you go there you could well find yourself - as David Beckham did - out of contention for years and years and years and in football, as we've seen with Michael Owen's career, it's all about timing. It's when you make the move and having sound reasons for doing it.

"The one criteria Ronaldo seems to have for going to Real Madrid is that they fired his imagination as a kid growing up and I just don't think that's enough to base a decision on."

Prohibitive

Rob Beasley, of the News of the World said that Ronaldo's thinking might change if reports that Jose Mourinho could move to Real Madrid in the summer are true.

"One of the first things that he (Mourinho) did when he came to Chelsea was try to sign Ronaldo," reflected Beasley.

"Everybody at Chelsea said 'United won't sell to Chelsea' and he said 'have you tried? Get on the phone and make that deal happen!' He loves him as a player and really, really wants him.

"But I'm with Sam. I will say this through gritted teeth but there is no better place on the planet to play your football (than Manchester United). The cost is prohibitive as well. The package could cost Real Madrid something like 80m quid."

Generator

Wallace believes Ronaldo still has "flaws" as a person but believes they are in part due to his upbringing and lifestyle.

"The thing that always bothers me about him is that he doesn't seem particularly self-aware. He thinks that we fall for all of this stuff where he throws his hands up in the air and looks terribly hurt at things," said Wallace.

"You'd like to think that maybe in the next few years he might just become a little bit more self-aware and maybe the things he is saying now and talking logically about where United are going suggest he is maturing a little bit.

"The other thing you have to remember about the boys and Ronaldo more than any is that they live in a very strange atmosphere.

"He left his island of Madeira when he was very, very young and has been a superstar in the making all of his life. I'm not trying to excuse some of the daft things they do but they do live in a very strange environment in which the things that might be common sense to you and I don't really occur to them.

"He is a huge generator of money for so many people; it goes to the root of what it is to be a modern footballer. You have to sometimes take into consideration the weird lives these guys lead and that no-one seems prepared to tell them what to do."