Cristiano Ronaldo has returned to Real Madrid’s Valdebebas training ground, four years on from leaving the club after an iconic stint at the Spanish giants.
The Portuguese star trained alone at the facility, according to Spanish outlet Relevo, as he looks to keep himself in shape as he searches for a new club following his country’s World Cup exit.
Ronaldo has been a free agent since mutually terminating his contract with Manchester United last month in the wake of his explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
Cristiano Ronaldo is reportedly spending a few days at Real Madrid’s training ground
It has been reported that the 37-year-old asked Real Madrid president Florentino Perez if he could train at Valdebebas for a few days following his country’s defeat to Morocco in the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Qatar.
Perez gave Ronaldo the green light to use their facilities, reportedly telling the Portuguese star: ‘Of course, this is your home.’
Ronaldo cemented his legacy as one of football’s greatest ever players during his nine-year stint at the Santiago Bernabeu after moving to Spain in a then world-record £80million deal from Man United.
Ronaldo (pictured in 2018) left Real Madrid for Juventus four years ago and is now a free-agent
He won two LaLiga titles and four Champions League trophies at Real, while four of his five Ballon d’Or gongs were awarded to him during his time at the club.
It would have been emotional for Ronaldo to return to the club’s training ground after what has been a tumultuous period for the Portuguese forward since he swapped Real for Juventus in 2018.
But he had to train away from the club’s current batch of players, who are being led by his former manager Carlo Ancelotti.
Ronaldo had a good relationship with Madrid’s president Perez, who declared back in 2019 on Onda Cero: ‘Cristiano Ronaldo has never created a problem in Madrid. He has been an example and I will remember him as the best player we have signed.
‘He has always been exemplary, a professional like the cup of a pine tree. I’ve always had a perfect relationship with him and I’ve never had any personal or money problems.’
However, Ronaldo said Perez’s attitude towards him had changed prior to his departure from the Bernabeu.
‘I felt it inside the club, especially from the…