The World Cup has been glorious for a number of reasons.
Let's list them.
- Three-game days
- Ronaldo's hat-trick
- Seeing that referee telling Neymar to shut up
- The goals
- Laughing at Argentina
- Laughing at Germany
- Luka Modric
One of the greatest things about the World Cup, though, is that it's made us more or less forget about the transfer window for the last three weeks.
Sure, the silly season machine continues to whir in the background, but while we have been fixated on events in Russia, the transfer columns have been nothing more than an annoying fly landing on the corner of the TV while you watch Belgium batter Brazil.
Unfortunately, the World Cup will be over next week and the madness will resume.
Actually, the madness has already resumed. Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup ended earlier than he would have wanted with Portugal going out to Uruguay in the last-16.
Since returning home, the Real Madrid superstar has been at the centre of what is potentially one of the most surprising transfers of all time: him switching to Juventus.
Ronaldo's long-term future in the Spanish capital has often been up for debate. However, there was a growing feeling that this summer he actually would go. After receiving a massive fine for tax evasion before the sudden departure of Zinedine Zidane, it just seemed like as good a time as any for CR7 to pack his bags.
But where would he go? PSG? The MLS? Or return to Manchester United? They seemed the best bets. They were until Juventus came out of nowhere anyway.
Reports in Italy, Spain and Portugal (reports pretty much everywhere to be honest) this week have suggested that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner is edging closer to a sensational €100m move to the Serie A giants.
Ronaldo, it seems, feels the need for a fresh challenge following nine years at the Bernabeu, during which he has lifted four Champions League titles and scored 450 goals in 438 games to cement his place as one of the greatest – perhaps
the greatest – footballer to ever play the game.
Now, Juventus have inadvertently sent rumours into overdrive after the club appeared to post a video on Chinese social media platform Weibo which all but confirmed Ronaldo's move to Turin. Watch below.
https://twitter.com/juve_news_/status/1015658987868573696
It's, of course, since been deleted but it seems fairly conclusive from where we're sitting, teasing Ronaldo's arrival by running through previous players to have worn the number 7 shirt for the Bianconeri.
Watch this space.
