Cristiano Ronaldo will not be on the plane for the first leg of Manchester United’s summer tour as he pushes for an exit from the club.
The 37-year-old forward missed a fourth straight day of training today, citing ‘family reasons’ for his absence.
Though United accept his excuse, they believed he would be available for the tour of Asia and Australasia where sponsors paid big amounts to have the likes of Ronaldo in Thailand and Australia.
But, according to various reports including the Mail, Ronaldo will not be travelling with United on their pre-season tour that leaves for Thailand on Friday.
It comes as Ronaldo attempts to navigate his departure from the club, with the player informing the board last week that he wants to leave.
Chelsea are interested in signing Ronaldo but the Red Devils are not considering selling the forward to a Premier League rival.
Though United maintain that Ronaldo is not for sale and that he has one year left on his deal, the club now privately accept that their future may be best served by letting him leave.
But, suitors outside of England are in short supply. Roma and Napoli are both reported to be interested but couldn’t afford Ronaldo’s wages.
It comes as United reportedly set a £13million asking price for Ronaldo, which is what they paid for the Portugal skipper just 11 months ago.
