I’m a World Cup legend and football icon who bought a club for £26million – but I want to sell after just five years
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BRAZIL legend Ronaldo certainly knows a thing or two about success in football.
But he has struggled to convert his on-pitch glory to the boardroom since buying his own club.
The two-time World Cup and Ballon d'Or winner, 46, became the first former footballer to buy a club in one of Europe's top-five leagues in September 2018.
Ronaldo stumped up £26million for 51 per cent of Spanish top-flight side Real Valladolid and then bought another 21 per cent the following year.
Unsurprisingly, Valladolid fans were excited about his arrival - and Ronaldo himself appeared ready for the challenge.
He said: "I have gone through many stages in my training in football to prepare for this. Football is all about passion.
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"We want to build the best team possible to compete while also giving information about our management with transparency."
However, things have not quite worked out as planned for Real.
The Estadio Nuevo Jose Zorrilla side stayed in LaLiga in Ronaldo's first year at the helm - and finished a respectable 13th in 2019-20.
However, their luck ran out in 2020-21 as the club were relegated into the second division.
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Valladolid wasted no time returning to the top tier with immediate promotion but the club suffered the drop again last term to sink back into the Segunda Division despite having former Chelsea star Kenedy in the squad.
That prompted heavy criticism of the famous owner, especially as he pointed the finger and blamed others for their second relegation in three seasons.
And now Ronaldo is already looking to sell the club - less than five years after his fanfare takeover.
Reports suggested a letter of intent was sent from investors to the club's board regarding a possible purchase.
A £69m offer for an 80 per cent takeover was on the table and accepted - but the deal was conditional on Real staying up last term and therefore collapsed.
Ronaldo has also insisted he will not sell unless he leaves the club in a better state than when he arrived in 2018, meaning he looks set to have to wait at least another 12 months due to the relegation.
The former Barcelona and Real Madrid striker is said to want to return to Brazil to be closer to his children.
And he also has a controlling stake in boyhood club Cruziero, investing a whopping £55m for a 70 per cent stake as part of his plan to "give back to Cruzeiro and take them where they deserve to be".
His plan worked, too, with the Belo Horizonte club winning the 2022 Campeonato Brasileiro Serie B to return to the top flight again.
