Cristiano Ronaldo was close to joining Chelsea in the summer of 2022, but strong opposition from then-manager Thomas Tuchel halted the deal before it reached an advanced stage.
A report by The Athletic reflecting on former owner Todd Boehly’s tenure revealed that Boehly was drawn to the idea of building Chelsea’s attack around the Portuguese star during his first transfer window at the club.
Boehly met with Ronaldo’s agent, Jorge Mendes, to discuss moving the player from Manchester United to Stamford Bridge—a potential signing carrying significant sporting and commercial value.
However, Tuchel repeatedly informed Chelsea’s hierarchy of his firm opposition to signing Ronaldo, leading the club to drop the matter despite Boehly’s enthusiasm for the deal.
While the new report did not cite a single reason for the rejection, reporting from that period indicated that Tuchel did not view Ronaldo as a fit for his high-pressing system and feared every match and storyline at the club would revolve around the Portuguese superstar.
Chelsea instead signed Raheem Sterling from Manchester City, with Tuchel declaring at the time that the club’s remaining priority was reinforcing the defense following the departures of Antonio Rüdiger and Andreas Christensen.
Ronaldo’s attempt to depart came despite scoring 24 goals in 38 matches during his first season back at Manchester United, as the team finished sixth in the Premier League and failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League.
The player remained at Old Trafford after the transfer fell through, before his relationship with manager Erik ten Hag deteriorated, culminating in an explosive interview with Piers Morgan and Manchester United mutually terminating his contract on November 22, 2022.
Meanwhile, Chelsea dismissed Tuchel on September 7 of that same year, ending a 20-month spell during which he won the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, and FIFA Club World Cup, alongside reaching three domestic finals.
Following his release, Al Nassr announced the signing of Ronaldo on December 30, 2022, on an initial two-and-a-half-year contract—ending his search for a UEFA Champions League club and opening the Saudi chapter of his career.
