I Want Ronaldo at Inter, Says Coach Cuper
Real Madrid revealed on Friday that Ronaldo's agent Alexandre Martins had told them the World Cup winning forward was ready to leave inter and could be interested in a move to the Bernabeu.
"I've never said I don't want to keep Ronaldo," Cuper hit back in an interview with Spanish sports daily ****Marca**** published on Monday. "It's a lie.
"We've all worked hard to get Ronaldo back playing football and the squad has been built around him. "I want Ronaldo at Inter. Transfer matters are handled only by the club and I have every confidence in the club. With Ronaldo in the team I'm happy."
The rumors of Ronaldo's move were greeted by feverish speculation that Real are about to bring about a third major transfer coup in as many years, following the arrival at the Bernabeu of Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo.
That speculation has continued despite the assertion of Inter's owner Massimo Moratti that Ronaldo is not for sale, with some Spanish newspapers claiming that Cuper is not keen on keeping the world's most famous player.
Real President Florentino Perez broke the transfer record twice in two years to sign Figo for $56 million and Zidane for $66 million.
According to Moratti, he would have to pay a lot more to bring in Ronaldo, who reestablished his reputation by leading Brazil to the World Cup in South Korea and Japan with eight goals, reported Reuters.
"He is not for sale," Moratti told ****La Repubblica**** newspaper over the weekend. "We have only fixed a base price, below which we would not go, and that begins at $100 million euros ($98.62 million)."