Former Liverpool manager reveals why Reds once rejected Cristiano Ronaldo

Former Liverpool manager Gerard Houllier has opened up why and how the Merseyside side club didn’t sign Cristaino Ronaldo years ago.

The Portuguese star joined Manchester United from Sporting Lisbon in 2003, but Houllier says Ronaldo could have played for Liverpool if not for his wage demand.

I saw him in the Toulon Under-21 tournament and we went for him

Houllier told the Liverpool Echo.

But we had a wage scale and we weren’t paying the sort of salary he wanted.Then Manchester United played a friendly against Sporting Lisbon and all their boys said to Sir Alex Ferguson: "You have to sign him". But I agreed with not breaking the wage structure. I thought it would cause problems in our dressing room.

Instead of Ronaldo, Liverpool signed Harry Kewell in 2003 for £5m and weeks later, United signed Ronaldo for £12.2m.

Ronaldo went on to enjoy an illustrious six years at United winning three Premier League titles, a Champions League title among others. On a personal note, he won the Ballon d’Or award after his heroics in the 2007/2008 season.

He joined Real Madrid in 2009 for a then world record £80m. He has since established himself as one of the greatest footballers and has shattered almost all the club records at Real. He is currently Real Madrid’s all time highest goal scorer.