Cristiano Ronaldo: Lovely footage of Al-Nassr star showing up at Real Madrid training | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo returning to Real Madrid has been bounded about the rumour mill for a few years now.

At various pivotal moments in Ronaldo‘s career since his decision to leave the Bernabeu in 2018, there have been suggestions that we might not have seen him pull on the famous white jersey for the final time.

Ultimately, though, the narrative has never gone further than that: suggestions.

Even when Real allowed Ronaldo to use their facilities for training after the termination of his contract at Manchester United, any indication of an actual transfer to the club never grew beyond whispers and unfounded claims.

And now that Ronaldo has put pen to paper on one of the most lucrative deals in football history with a move to Al-Nassr, it really does feel certain now that a Real reunion is truly impossible.

However, that doesn’t mean that Ronaldo and Real can’t still enjoy a fruitful relationship even if they don’t get the band back together by functioning as player and club as they did between 2009 and 2018.

Ronaldo is, after all, the club’s all-time record goalscorer and always speaks about his time in the Spanish capital in glowing terms.

In other words, Ronaldo still has a special place in the heart of arguably the world’s biggest club, and that was even apparent this week as Los Blancos made a trip to their iconic striker’s neck of the woods.

Why did Ronaldo and Real Madrid meet up?

With the 2022–23 Supercopa de España taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Carlo Ancelotti’s men are literally sharing the same city as the man who scored a crazy 450 goals for them.

As a result, it would have been a crying shame if they didn’t catch up, so you’ll be happy to learn that Ronaldo did indeed swing by to say ‘hola’ to some of his old friends in the Real set-up.

Various videos have made it onto social media showing Ronaldo taking time out from his preparations for Al-Nassr to watch the current Real first team training for their final against Barcelona on January 15.

But the loveliest moment of all was posted by the Spanish champions themselves as it showed Ronaldo checking in with his former manager Ancelotti as well as club legend Roberto Carlos.

You only have to look at Ronaldo’s demeanour and expressions to see just how happy he was to see so many old faces, and his reaction to Carlos coming over was particularly sweet.

Video: Wholesome moment Ronaldo greets Ancelotti and Carlos

It just goes to show that although the door has been kept shut with regards to Ronaldo returning to Real as a player that his relationship with the club is by no means fractured or frayed.

Ronaldo’s achievements for Los Blancos are simply unforgettable and while he wasn’t always loved by those who lined the Bernabeu week in, week out, there’s not a level-headed Madrista who could possibly argue against his time at the club being anything short of extraordinary.

The great man himself might only be watching Real players from a distance these days as opposed to rubbing shoulders with them, but his legacy and all the memories that came with it feel just as stirring as ever today.