Jorge Mendes ‘thought out, studied and planned’ a move to take Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United to Napoli this summer.
That’s according to Gianluca Di Marzio, who provides details on what would have been one of the market’s biggest moves this summer.
Ronaldo was linked with an exit from Manchester United throughout much of the window, having made it clear he wanted to be playing for a Champions League club.
He set super-agent Mendes to work trying to find him that move but the Portuguese duo found the market less receptive than they might have imagined.
Napoli emerged as a serious contender later in the window, with reports in England and Italy proposing a potential mega deal that would involve Victor Osimhen moving to Old Trafford.
Mendes worked as an intermediary between the two clubs, trying to broker a deal that would suit both Napoli and Manchester United.
Ultimately, he couldn’t find one and Ronaldo ended up staying in Manchester, but his agent put the work in nonetheless according to Di Marzio.
“Jorge Mendes has thought it out, studied it and planned it in every detail but, despite his attempts, he has not managed to complete the operation that would have inflamed the last days of the football market,” he told TuttoMercatoWeb.
“(It was) a deal that immediately emerged as very complicated due to the short time available and the many entanglements that such a transfer required.
“Clarification: there has never been a negotiation between Napoli and Manchester United, but Jorge Mendes.
“The Portuguese’s long-time agent – has in every way tried to ‘move’ his client to a club playing the Champions League and the idea of Napoli was certainly the most fascinating one.
“Mendes’ plan was clear: to bring Napoli an offer for Osimhen of €100m and then replace the Nigerian with the arrival of Ronaldo on loan, with United who would have paid a large part of the ex-Juve’s onerous salary. Nothing came of it, however.”
