By the time Ole Gunnar Solskjaer sat down for what can sometimes be a chaotic media Zoom call at 13:15 BST on Friday afternoon, the Manchester United manager already knew Cristiano Ronaldo would be returning to Old Trafford.
Despite widespread speculation Ronaldo was set to join Manchester City, United officials were reasonably confident on Thursday night that momentum around the five-time Ballon D’Or winner returning to the Premier League was shifting away from Etihad Stadium and four miles across Manchester to Old Trafford.
The final push came the following morning, when former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson got involved.
The bond between Ferguson and Ronaldo is strong. Ronaldo still referred to the Scot as ‘The Boss’ long after his exit for Real Madrid in 2009. Ferguson implored Ronaldo to return to Old Trafford, knowing he will be feted as a hero. The alternative would be to tarnish a reputation that, if anything, has grown even bigger as United struggled to recapture former glories since Ferguson’s retirement in 2013.
Ferguson’s words followed up encouraging messages from Ronaldo’s former team-mates Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra. Another former team-mate and current United technical director Darren Fletcher was mentioned to BBC Sport as also being part of an orchestrated charm offensive, that also involved Ronaldo’s Portugal team-mate Bruno Fernandes.
By the time Solskjaer spoke to the media, Juventus coach Max Allegri had already told the world Ronaldo was leaving the club. The deal, in effect, was sealed.
As is his way, Solskjaer did not want to give anything away until it was absolutely watertight. Three times he swerved questions about Ronaldo before the man from the Telegraph had one final go.
Why, he asked, if one of the greatest players in the world was available, would Manchester United not at least try to sign him?
Solskjaer peered into the camera and gave just enough away for those who already had an inkling for what was happening - and for some that was on Thursday - to be certain it would come true, even if the rest of the world did not grasp its true significance.
(BBC Sport)