Revealed: How Arsenal missed out on Cristiano Ronaldo before he became a football superstar
FORMER Arsenal scout Damien Comolli has revealed how the Gunners missed out on signing Cristiano Ronaldo.
Comolli was one of Arsene Wenger’s must trusted aides as he rebuilt the side at Highbury and turned them into one of the most entertaining teams in Europe.
Cristiano Ronaldo is the biggest superstar in world football – but he could have been an Arsenal playerEPA
The Frenchman was the first one to spot Gunners legend Thierry Henry – but Comolli has also admitted Arsenal missed out when it came to Ronaldo.
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Speaking on French television channel SFR Sport, Comolli said: “The first time I saw Ronaldo, it was at the Montaigu tournament, he was 15.
Damien Comolli spotted Cristiano Ronaldo when he was a schoolboy playing at Sporting LisbonPa:press AssociationDamien Comolli was one of Arsene Wenger’s must trusted scouts at ArsenalReuters
“He played against Japan before and I thought: ‘Who the hell is this?’
“At half-time, I called my contact in Portugal to which I said that I had seen a phenomenon.
“Since Thierry Henry, I’ve never seen that.
“He came twice to the training centre. Nobody knows that. He met Thierry, who was his idol.
Cristiano Ronaldo impressed during a friendly against Manchester United so much that Sir Alex Ferguson went out and signed himAP:Associated Press
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"But when it came to making the transfer, there was no money.
"Some months later, Manchester United made a partnership with Sporting, they played a friendly match in Lisbon.
"Sir Alex Ferguson said: ‘He must go to United’."
United decided to sign Ronaldo after he impressed the players so much in a pre-season friendly they pleaded with boss Ferguson to bring him to Old Trafford.
Since then he has established himself as the biggest superstar in world football having won every competition except the World Cup at club and international level.
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