Napoli sporting director Cristiano has revealed that his club was not in the race to sign Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo in this summer transfer window. Earlier, it was learnt that the Italian club was in pursuit of the Portuguese forward in a bid to bring fortune in the UEFA Champions League 2022-23. Except Napoli, Ronaldo was linked with various top clubs across Europe after he expressed his desire to leave the Red Devils due to lack of UCL. The 37-year-old joined his former club just a year ago and his return to Old Trafford for the 'last dance' didn't happen to be fruitful as the Premier League side missed out on a top-four finish in the English top flight despite Ronaldo scoring 25 goals across all competitions. Cristiano Ronaldo Reunites With Former Real Madrid Teammate Kaka After Manchester United’s Win Over Arsenal (See Pics) 

However, after the end of summer window, Napoli director has denied all the rumours of them chasing Ronaldo. While talking about their link with a possible signing of the United forward, Giuntoli said: "I'm sorry to say that but we've never been in real negotiations with Manchester United to sign Cristiano Ronaldo this summer." On 31st August, 2022, the UK media reported that CR7's agent Jorge Mendes was in talks with Napoli to complete a deadline day move to Serie A for the player.

Since the beginning of the window, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner had been linked with plenty of elite clubs like Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Barcelona and a few more. However, all the clubs rejected the possibility of landing the 37-year-old professional, with only the Blues staying in the race. Amid growing rumours, boss Thomas Tuchel finally ruled out the chance of Ronaldo playing at Stamford Bridge this summer, saying that the United attacker wasn't in his plans.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 06, 2022 09:48 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).