Cristiano Ronaldo at Barcelona? CR7 opens up on how Catalan giants were keen to sign him before Manchester United

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Cristiano Ronaldo made his move from Sporting Lisbon to Manchester United back in 2003

Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo was on the verge of joining Barcelona before making his move to Manchester United. Ronaldo has now opened up about his early life as to how top teams in Europe were keen on signing him when he was a teenager. He claimed that Barcelona had scouted him but it was eventually Manchester United to bought the superstar.

After stints in England, Spain, and Italy, Ronaldo is now playing his trade in the Saudi Pro League. While over the years, CR7 has shared a huge rivalry, it was in fact the Catalan giants who were keen on signing him when he was still at Sporting Lisbon.

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“Yes, it was when I was playing at Sporting Lisbon and I had the opportunity to join various clubs, one of which was Barcelona,” Ronaldo told El Chiringuito de Jugones.

🔵🔴 Cristiano Ronaldo: “I could have played for Barça before Manchester United”.

“I was at Sporting, they tried to sign me. They wanted me but one year after…”.

“Then Manchester United appeared”, told @EduAguirre7. pic.twitter.com/3Gb818V3hc

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 4, 2025

Ronaldo shared a rivalry with Barcelona when he played in the Champions League with United. And then later on the rivalry intensified when he culminated his move to Real Madrid. Ronaldo and Barcelona’s Lionel Messi shared a decade-long rivalry showcasing themselves as the best footballers of the planet in recent times.

“I remember being with a person from Barcelona who wanted to sign me, but it didn’t happen. Maybe they wanted to bring me in, but it would have been for the following year. Then, a club like came along and signed me immediately. You know how fast everything moves in football,” he added.

He claimed that Barcelona wasn’t adamant on signing him instantly, but wanted to wait for a further year. In the meantime, Manchester United under the legendary Sir Alex Fergusen acted immediately and signed the youngster, and as they say – the rest is history.