Cristiano Ronaldo has admitted Sir Alex Ferguson was the ‘main key’ behind his decision to return to Manchester United.
The Portugal international made a return to the club on deadline day by signing a two-year contract at Old Trafford after three years with Juventus.
Ronaldo spent six years at United under Ferguson before leaving for Real Madrid in 2009 but the duo have remained close and the Scot spoke to him in the days before his return to the Theatre of Dreams.
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And Ronaldo has now conceded that Ferguson was the major driver behind his decision to rejoin the club, as he’s his ‘father in football.’
‘As everybody knows, since I signed for Manchester [United] at 18, Sir Alex Ferguson was the key,’ Ronaldo told MUTV.
‘I remember when we played against Manchester when I was at Sporting Lisbon. For me, Sir Alex Ferguson is like a father in football for me. He helped me a lot, he taught me many things, and in my opinion of course he had a big role because the relationship that we had, we keep in touch all the time, and he’s an unbelievable person.
‘I really like him a lot and he was the main key for me to be in the position that I am, that I signed for Manchester United.’
Ronaldo has signed an initial two-year contract at Old Trafford but the club have the option of extending that by a further one year. And that would take the former Juve star to his 39th birthday at United.
United paid an initial £12.8m for the Portugal skipper but they could pay another £4.9m based on his time at the club.
Ronaldo hopes to make his second debut for the Red devils on September 11th, when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team host Newcastle at Old Trafford.
