Although Cristiano Ronaldo has not officially commented about it, inside sources have confirmed that the Portuguese has ended his two-decade long association with super-agent Jorge Mendes. The incident follows after Ronaldo joined Saudi side Al Nassr in a record-breaking €200m-per-year deal until the summer of 2025. However, Mendes was nowhere in the picture as the deal went through, with Ronaldo’s personal manager Ricardo Regufe reportedly leading the negotiations with the player himself involved as well.
But fans have been asking about Mendes, who was hired by Ronaldo back in 2003, when he left Sporting Lisbon for Manchester United. Ever since then, Mendes has brokered deals for the superstar player to Real Madrid, Juventus and back to United. The Portuguese pair even went to award ceremonies together and were known to have been sharing a close bind for years. However, a source close to the Portuguese agent has now revealed the reason behind his separation from Cristiano Ronaldo.
Cristiano Ronaldo has an obvious problem of perception – insider on separation between the player-agent
According to The Athletic, problems started brewing between Cristiano and Jorge Mendes, when the player was frustrated with what happened in the summer since his desire to leave United for a Champions League club was not fulfilled. On the other hand, Mendes was reportedly upset with Ronaldo for refusing to acknowledge that he could not join European club. Given the situation, Mendes encouraged Ronaldo to remain at United, accept his position in Erik ten Hag’s team, and demonstrate his ability on the field when played by the Dutchman.
He further tried to explain to the five-time Ballon d’Or winner that a successful campaign might have attracted Champions League suitors in the upcoming summer, or even have caused United to activate the one-year contract extension. However, according to the source close to Mendes, Cristiano Ronaldo was irked by this, as he broke all ties with his fellow countryman. The source revealed to El Confidencial:
“Cristiano Ronaldo has an obvious problem of perception that doesn’t allow him to discern if the praise he receives is real or fake. He’s very curious, that’s why those around him treat him like a triumphant Julius Caesar all the time, because they know that he is not capable of seeing beyond.
“Ronaldo cannot survive his fame one month after his 38th birthday. And he certainly can’t cash in like the star he’s been. There is no one who can satisfy his ego, his economic request and at the same time give him the collective opportunities that make sense in his head, but not in reality.”
However, there have been rumours that Ronaldo even took the initiative and called at least one executive of a European club himself to discuss the possibility of joining. Furthermore, it is also being reported that Mendes had strongly advised Ronaldo against the Piers Morgan interview, and see-off the remaining six months left on his United deal. It is being understood that Mendes felt Ronaldo could have achieved an important role under Ten Hag, had he not thrown away the tantrums.
But Ronaldo rejected all the advise and went ahead with the blasting interview, which ultimately saw United terminate his contract. Moreover, he also contradicted his own comments from the interview that he still wants to compete in Europe, and joined Al Nassr for a bumper deal which has now made him the richest athlete the world of sports has ever known.