Cristiano Ronaldo’s shock return to Manchester United saw the club’s stock market value rocket by £212m at one point on Friday. The club’s website, www.manutd.com, could not handle the massive traffic the return of the player-generated as fans flocked to the site to see the news of his arrival.
On Thursday, it looked inevitable that Ronaldo would ignore his previous loyalties and sign for English Premier Leagues champions Manchester City, which would consequently put an end to their search for a striker. But things turned around on Friday as the player and his agent switched to Manchester United.
Cristiano Ronaldo was announced as a Man United player for the second time in his career to break the heart of Manchester City fans. The former Real Madrid star had spent the previous three campaigns at Juventus conquering the Serie A. During his stay at Juventus, he scored 81 goals in 97 league appearances during that time and helped his side win the title twice.
Manchester United will pay £20m for the 36-year-old, managing to pay a cut-price figure for the forward due to his contract in Italy running out next season anyway. He has now agreed to a two-year contract at Old Trafford. When the Portuguese international was announced on United’s social channels, share prices rose by 9.8%.
This morning, United’s share prices opened at $17.38 (£12.62), but they soon rise to $19.09 (£13.87), which means that the club’s overall market value rose by $293m (£212m). As many expected, the shares then fell slightly after the initial shock factor passed. However, it is still up by more than 6%.
Ronaldo joined United in 2003 from Sporting Lisbon for £12.2m. At the time, that figure made him the most expensive teenager in world football. He scored 84 goals in 196 league appearances, helping the Red Devils to three Premier League titles, one FA Cup, three League Cup and the Champions League in 2007/08.