‘Broken up but still living together’: Cristiano Ronaldo intent on quitting Juventus, claim reports in Italy

Reports from Italy have claimed that football legend Cristiano Ronaldo is adamant on an exit from Serie A giants Juventus following their Champions League exit to Porto, with the two parties 'broken up but still living together'.

Local newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport broke the news on Friday, and wrote that the five-time Champions League and Ballon d'Or winner has asked his superagent Jorge Mendes to find him another club for the 2021/2022 season.

Ex-club Real Madrid can be ruled out, as the La Liga giants are mired in debt and rebuilding their Bernabeu stadium, while European Super League head Florentino Perez has additionally poured cold water on any approach.

"The rumors of Cristiano Ronaldo's return to Madrid are just rumors from his entourage. There is nothing," the president explained during his highly-controversial appearance on the El Larguero program. 

"In general, there will not be big transfers this summer," Perez went on.

"When money does not flow from the rich clubs to the poor clubs, everyone suffers."

"It's impossible to make signings like [Kylian] Mbappe and [Erling] Haaland, in general, not just for Real Madrid, without the Super League," he insisted.

Yet despite pulling out of the failed breakaway project, former club Manchester United are tipped as a possible next destination if Ronaldo can lower his current salary expectations of $37 million. 

Taxes would also be an issue, as the 36-year-old Portuguese star will need to pay more than in Italy.

But with Juve at risk of failing to qualify for the UCL and exiting it prematurely in this campaign to Porto, La Gazzetta claims that Ronaldo's attitude has changed behind the scenes at the Allianz Stadium. 

"It’s almost like Juventus and Ronaldo have broken up but are still living together," was the key takeaway from the Italian outlet's piece.

With few friends there other than the Portuguese-speaking Brazilians and Carlo Pinsoglio, perhaps he won't be missed by teammates who don't enjoy as much "freedom" during Andrea Pirlo's training sessions either.

Away from the football pitch, Ronaldo's life is even more complicated. 

Yesterday, it emerged that former model Kathryn Mayorga, who is accusing Cristiano Ronaldo of sexually assaulting her in a Las Vegas hotel room after meeting on a night out in 2009, is now seeking a total of $78 million in damages, according to court documents.

Splitting her claim between “past pain and suffering", “future pain and suffering” and punitive damages, she also wishes to claim for smaller amounts covering expenses and legal fees.

Mayorga's legal team has reportedly filed a list of more than 60 witnesses they are targeting to testify, including three police offers involved in the original complaint, Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli and ­his already-mentioned agent Jorge Mendes.

But Ronaldo has always denied the accusations stating: "Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in."