Juventus sporting director Federico Kirubini said his club had to sell Cristiano Ronaldo last August because the player requested it, and added that the departure of the Portuguese international may be the beginning of changes in the Italian club.
Ronaldo, 36, returned to his former club, Manchester United, after spending 3 years at Juventus, during which he won the league title twice and scored 101 goals.
"Let's say that there was no way to keep Ronaldo after he spoke to us the way he spoke to us. He had to leave. He was very clear in expressing his desire and we could not force a player to stay in a place," Kirubini said in a press statement quoted by Tuttosport. against his will."
After Ronaldo's departure, Juventus restored Moise Kean's services from Everton on a two-year loan contract.
Kirubini said that the signing of Kean, 21, may indicate a new policy related to transfers at Juventus, because "Ken is not a replacement for Ronaldo, but is an element in the framework of a plan aimed at continuing to win in a different project."
"The sale of Ronaldo represents the end of one stage, and the return of a young player represents the beginning of another stage," he added.
Kirobini expressed his optimism about the imminent extension of the contract with Argentine Paulo Dybala, whose current contract with the club expires next summer.
Previous reports stated that Ronaldo's huge salary - which exceeds 30 million euros annually - was straining Juventus' budget, especially after the Corona pandemic, and that his departure might enable the club to include many talents at the same or much less cost.
Real Madrid is one of the most prominent clubs that have followed a policy of inclusion of young talents in recent years, as they keep some of them and lend others until they mature in football, and the Juventus president and his counterpart in Real have a strong relationship that may have influenced the direction of this new policy.