10 Players Relieved They Didn't Sign For Liverpool
2. Cristiano Ronaldo
''Liverpool are one of the best clubs in England and it would be a dream for any player to represent a club of such traditions. I will have to hope they make an offer that is good for both Sporting and myself. The English league is not one of my favourites, but is is very interesting. Lets see how things turn out. - Cristiano Ronaldo, July 2003.
Whos to say that Ronaldo wouldnt have realised his true potential at Anfield had Gerard Houllier pushed through with the deal to sign the teenager from Sporting Lisbon 11 years ago? Whos to say that the medals, titles and honours that the Portuguese maestros genius lured to Old Trafford wouldnt have been nestling in the Liverpool trophy cabinet instead?
''I saw him in the Toulon Under-21 tournament and we went for him, but we had a wage scale and we werent paying the sort of salary he wanted. Then Manchester United played a friendly against Sporting Lisbon and all their boys said to Sir Alex Ferguson, You have to sign him. But I agreed with not breaking the wage structure. I thought it would cause problems in the dressing room. - Gerard Houllier, December 2010.
Of course, Houllier is not alone in wondering what might have been with the worlds best player, with Arsene Wenger having missed out on the chance to tie him down to a contract at Arsenal during the same summer. Some might say that the Premier League was but a means to an end for Ronaldo, as he ultimately got the move he craved since he was a young boy in 2009 when Real Madrid came calling, but Manchester United supporters know they mean a whole lot more to the Portuguese superstar than just that. Not only did then stability and guidance of Sir Alex Ferguson nurture and improve the undeniably gifted but consistently inconsistent youngster, but the club allowed him the platform to flourish, competing for major honours at the highest level. As Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres will no doubt testify, you can stick one or two great players into an average side and the trophy haul will be comparatively mediocre.
Recent Journalism & New Media graduate. Insatiable thirst for all things football, and hopes to break into the field of sports journalism in the near future.
Have made a significantly insignificant playing career out of receiving several slaps around the head for not passing the ball.
