becoming one of the four most expensive players of all time.A deal worth 112m euros (£99.2m) has been reached between the two clubs that has seen the Portuguese sign a four-year deal with the Italian champions. Ronaldo, 33, won four Champions League titles in his nine years at Real. "The time has come to open a new stage in my life, that's why I asked the club toaccept transferring me," he said.
The top two world record transfer fees have
been paid out by Paris St-Germain - the
£200m they paid Barcelona for Brazil
forward Neymar last August, and the fee of
around £166m for France forward Kylian
Mbappe in July after a successful season on
loan with PSG.
Barcelona also paid Liverpool £142m for
Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho in
January. For Juventus, the fee they will pay
for Ronaldo is set to eclipse the £75.3m
they paid for forward Gonzalo Higuain from
Napoli in July 2016.
Juventus are set to play Real Madrid in a
pre-season International Champions Cup
tournament in the United States, with the
match taking place at FedEx Field in
Washington on Saturday, 4 August.
'Real Madrid have conquered my
heart' - Ronaldo's letter to fans
These years in Real Madrid, and in this city
of Madrid, have been possibly the happiest
of my life.
I only have feelings of enormous gratitude
for this club, for its fans and for this city.
I can only thank all of them for the love
and affection I have received.
However, I believe that the time has come to
open a new stage in my life and that is why
I have asked the club to accept transferring
me. I feel that way and I ask everyone,
and especially our fans, to please
understand me.
They have been absolutely wonderful for
nine years. They have been nine unique
years. It has been an emotional time for
me, full of consideration but also hard
because Real Madrid is of the highest
demands, but I know very well that I will
never forget that I have enjoyed football
here in a unique way.
I have had fabulous team-mates on the
field and in the dressing room, I have felt
the warmth of an incredible crowd and
together we have won three Championships
in a row and four Championships in five
years. And with them also, on an individual
level, I have the satisfaction of having won
four Gold Balls and three Gold Boots. All
during my time in this immense and
extraordinary club.
Real Madrid has conquered my heart, and
that of my family, and that is why more
than ever I want to say thank you: thanks
to the club, the President, the directors, my
colleagues, all the technical staff, doctors,
physios and incredible workers that make
everything work, that tirelessly pursue every
minute detail.
Thank you infinitely once more to our fans
and thanks also to Spanish Football. During
these nine exciting years I have played
against great players. My respect and my
recognition for all of them.
I have reflected a lot and I know that the
time has come for a new cycle. I'm leaving
but this shirt, this badge and the Santiago
Bernabeu but they will continue to always
feel part of me wherever I am.
Thanks to all and, of course, as I said that
first time in our stadium nine years ago: Go
Madrid!
'Ronaldo will always be one of the
great symbols' - Real Madrid's
reaction
Ronaldo joined Real from Manchester
United for £80m in July 2009 and scored a
club-record 450 goals and won the Ballon
D'Or - awarded to the world's best
footballer - in 2008, 2013, 2014, 2016 and
2017.
He has helped them win the Champions
League in four of the past five seasons,
scoring in the 2014 and 2017 finals.
"For Real Madrid Cristiano Ronaldo will
always be one of the great symbols," said a
club statement.
"Real Madrid wants to express its gratitude
to a player who has proved to be the best in
the world and who has marked one of the
brightest times in the history of our club and
world football.
"Real Madrid will always be your home."
Who next for Real Madrid?
Despite their dominance in Europe's premier
club competition, Real struggled
domestically, finishing 17 points behind
champions Barcelona last season.
Real are keen on reshaping their team
under new manager Julen Lopetegui and the
33-time La Liga winners have also been
linked with a move for Paris St-Germain's
26-year-old Brazil forward Neymar.
However, it would be a controversial move as
Neymar spent four years at Real's fierce
rivals Barcelona before joining PSG in his
world record transfer of £200m last
summer.
Real have also been linked with a move for
another PSG forward, Mbappe, the 19-
year-old who has helped France reach the
semi-finals of the World Cup.
Italian football expert James Horncastle
told BBC Radio 5 live: "Real would be
reluctant to lose Ronaldo without a
replacement in hand. They have been linked
with Neymar, who joined PSG for a world
record fee last season, and their flirting
with the Brazilian appears to have put
Ronaldo's nose out of joint at Madrid.
"We don't know who is being lined up, be it
Kylian Mbappe, Eden Hazard or Harry
Kane."
'The deal of the century' - analysis
James Horncastle, Italian football expert on
BBC Radio 5 live
Juventus were made aware a few weeks ago
that Ronaldo might be available on
favourable terms. Ronaldo had a buyout
clause worth $1bn (£886m) and Juventus
were told Real Madrid were willing to accept
£100m and Juventus were willing to pursue
that even though it would mean
restructuring their wage system.
We heard yesterday Juventus president,
Andrea Agnelli, boarded a plane and then
got a helicopter to see Ronaldo on holiday in
Greece, and it looks as though the deal is
done. They are calling it the deal of the
century in Italy.
Juventus have reached the Champions
League final twice in the last four years and
lost both. One of those defeats was to
Ronaldo's Real Madrid. He scored in the
final in Cardiff and he knocked them out in
the quarters this year. They believe he is the
difference and the player who could achieve
the Champions League with Juventus for the
first time in 23 years.
Winning the trophy has been an obsession
for them. This is much more than about
football it's about them going to the next
level as a business. When Deloitte ranked the
10 richest clubs in the world earlier this
year, Juventus were only 10th. They believe
by being able to leverage and monetising
some of his followers on social media and his
commercial deals, will help them close the
gap financially on Madrid, Barcelona and
Manchester United.
The Italians are confident there could be
an announcement this evening, although the
finer details of the deal would take a few
more days. Juventus' share prices on th
stock exchange sky-rocketed by 33%.
Ronaldo's career in stats
450 - Ronaldo's Real Madrid-record
goal tally, in 438 games.
17 - his record goal tally for a
Champions League season, in 2013-14.
105 - total Champions League goals for
the club, which also included 16 in
2015-16 and 15 in the most recent
campaign.
311 - goals in La Liga.
16 - major trophies with the club,
including two La Ligas and four
Champions Leagues, three Club World
Cups and three European Super Cups.
44 - hat-tricks for Madrid including a
club-record 34 in La Liga.
8 - the number of times he scored four
or more goals in a Real match. That
included five-goal league hauls against
Granada in 2014-15 and Espanyol the
following season.
61 - his most prolific season for Real
came in 2014-15 with 61 goals in all
competitions, including 48 in the league.
659 - career goals, including five for
Sporting Lisbon, 118 for Manchester
Culled from www.bbc.com
