“Be aware, Juventus are always Juventus” - When Ronaldo Nazario commented on Cristiano Ronaldo leaving Serie A giants for Manchester United

In 2021, Brazilian football legend Ronaldo Nazario shared his thoughts on Cristiano Ronaldo's move from Juventus to Manchester United. The decision to leave Juventus came after a relatively successful three-year stint in Italy.

Despite Cristiano Ronaldo's brilliance, his exit was met with mixed reactions. A few Juventus legends such as Sergio Brio and Alessio Tacchinardi had openly questioned the way he left the club.

Ronaldo Nazario, often regarded as one of the greatest strikers to ever play the game, commented on this shift with a balanced perspective.

He acknowledged the impact Cristiano Ronaldo had on Italian football both in terms of lifting Juventus' profile and rejuvenating the Serie A league, but he was equally confident in the club's ability to move forward without him.

The Brazilian legend told Gazzetta dello Sport in 2021 (via Metro):

"The one between Cristiano and Juventus was a good story and it brought benefits to Italian football, it helped the world rediscover it, it made it competitive again at the highest levels."

Despite the departure of the superstar, Ronaldo Nazario was quick to remind everyone that Juventus were far bigger than any individual player.

"It was a magnificent passage. Cristiano preferred to leave, but the discussion doesn’t change. Juventus lost Cristiano, but the team is still strong. Be aware, Juventus are always Juventus," he added.

Nazario also pointed out that Juventus would not sit idle after losing one of the world's best players, alluding to the signing of forward Moise Kean as an example. He said:

"For example, they brought that young striker [Moise Kean] back to Turin, whom I like."

Cristiano Ronaldo's time at Juventus was a memorable one. In his three-year spell at the Allianz Stadium, he won two Serie A titles, two Supercoppa Italiana trophies, and a Coppa Italia. He scored 101 goals and provided 22 assists in 134 games across competitions.

However, he failed to win the UEFA Champions League which he won four times at previous club Real Madrid.

"It was a decision that was very difficult to turn down" - When Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said Manchester United's decision to resign Cristiano Ronaldo 'turned out wrong'

Two years after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was relieved of his duties as Manchester United's manager in 2021, he opined that the club's decision to re-sign Cristiano Ronaldo was wrong.

Cristiano Ronaldo returned to United for his second spell in the summer of 2021 after his three-year stint with Juventus. While the Portuguese icon did hit the ground running, the Red Devils took a gradual turn for the worse and sacked Solskjaer.

In 2023, Solskjaer said in an interview with The Athletic:

"It was a decision that was very difficult to turn down and I felt we had to take it, but it turned out wrong. It felt so right when he signed and the fans felt that at that Newcastle game when Old Trafford was rocking (after Ronaldo scored twice in a 4-1 win). He was still one of the best goalscorers in the world, he was looking strong."

"When I looked at the fixtures it was going to be a deciding period: Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham, and Leicester away. Then Chelsea and Arsenal, plus Champions League games. Things went against us. It started with Aston Villa at home (a 1-0 defeat) and a late penalty miss. When you have a group you need everyone to pull in the same direction. When things didn’t go right, you could see certain players and egos came out. We beat Tottenham convincingly 3-0 away, but then we lost two games," he added.

Cristiano Ronaldo currently plies his trade with Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr