Bayern Munich chief Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has had his take on Cristiano Ronaldo's surprise big-money transfer to Juventus this summer. The Portuguese star, having declared his intentions to leave Real Madrid after their Champions League final triumph over Liverpool, shocked the football world by joining the Bianconeri for a fee of 117 million euros.
The transfer fee has since been the subject of numerous debates with many claiming a 33-year-old player should not be worth anywhere close to the figure. One individual who has shared the same conviction in recent times is Bayern's Rummenigge.
In an interview with Spanish publication AS the 62-year-old former German international commended Juventus for their scoop and further emphasized that his club would never risk signing a player of Ronaldo's age for that amount of money.
"The signing of Cristiano is the one that has grabbed most attention and I understand that," he was quoted to have said by AS.
"He is a player who has won everything at Real Madrid in the last few years. For the past five years, he has been the best player in the world.
"Marketing questions have played a huge role in this move, but Bayern would not invest so much money on a player who is 33 years old," Rummenigge said.
"I was surprised that my counterpart Andrea Agnelli decided to get involved in this deal," the former Germany striker added. "In Italy, it has drawn a lot of praise. From Juventus' point of view the signing makes sense; Italian football has lost ground in recent years.
"With this huge operation, the Italians hope to gain the attention of the football world again."
