“I didn’t expect it” – Former Manchester United forward explains why he was surprised by Cristiano Ronaldo return

Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Manchester United has surprised Dimitar Berbatov. The Bulgarian forward was Ronaldo's team-mate a little over a decade ago at Manchester United. They played under Sir Alex Ferguson and were part of a special team that won multiple trophies.

Berbatov retired from the game in 2019 while Ronaldo has continued to dominate the game in Europe. CR7's return to Manchester United this summer has caught the former Bulgarian striker by surprise.

Upon being asked about CR7's homecoming, Berbatov told Mirror Sport:

"I was surprised, I didn't expect it. I thought he was going to go and look for another challenge like he did his whole career and to try and prove - not that he has anything to prove - but maybe to himself to go to a different championship and do it again like with Spain and then Italy."

The race is on ⚡️#MUFC | @Cristiano pic.twitter.com/DEKS02oLNY

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) September 9, 2021

Berbatov talked about players returning to their former clubs in football. It is an increasingly common trend. However, most of these returns are rather pale and more often than not, the player fails to live up to the expectations. Berbatov expects Ronaldo to take on that challenge at United. He said:

"I was surprised he returned to England, but I was happy. He is going to United and if you look at it like this it is also a new challenge because when you look at football, in history, when you go back to the same place for a second time it's not always as successful as the first one."

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Manchester United completed a last-minute deal to sign Cristiano Ronaldo

🇵🇹🔴 𝗩𝗜𝗩𝗔 𝗥𝗢𝗡𝗔𝗟𝗗𝗢 🔴🇵🇹🏡 @Cristiano is back!#MUFC | #RonaldoReturns

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) August 31, 2021

Ahead of the new season, talks had gathered about Ronaldo wanting to leave Juventus, the club he had been with for the last three years. While clubs like Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain were tipped to sign the Portuguese forward, Manchester United remained a distant third party.

City had agreed personal terms with the player and were close to announcing Ronaldo's signing. However in the eleventh hour, Manchester United chose to enter the negotiations.

Backed by phone calls to Ronaldo from Sir Alex Ferguson and other former players, Manchester United raced ahead in the deal to sign the Portuguese. Eventually City pulled out of the race, leaving Ronaldo to complete an emotional homecoming.

Manchester United's reunion with Ronaldo has sent the football world into a frenzy. The euphoria is expected to continue this weekend with Ronaldo expected to make his second debut for the club against Newcastle United.