Former Guangzhou Evergrande manager Luiz Felipe Scolari has revealed that Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo has asked him on several occasions about life in China, with there already having been mega-money offers for the Portuguese on the table from clubs in the East last summer.
Cristiano Ronaldo is in fine form for Real Madrid, having reeled Lionel Mesis in considerably in the race for the Golden Boot, now trailing the Argentine by just three goals after the Barca star held an eleven-goal advantage early in the season.
However, there has been significant interest in the Portuguese from elsewhere in recent years. Last summer, 'AS' reported that there were Chinese clubs that were open to the idea of paying €200m for the star as well as paying him €100m per year, though Ronaldo quickly shut down those rumours by insisting he wanted to stay in the Spanish capital.
Now, speaking to 'Esporte Interativo', Luiz Felipe Scolari has revealed that Ronaldo has asked him about life in China on several occasions.
"The person that has asked me about life in Chine on more than once occasion is Cristiano Ronaldo. Why couldn't Cristiano Ronaldo go to China?", he asked.
And what of the advice? Well, Scolari was very clear. "I gave him all the information," he explained. "We also have to understand that China is a different proposition for each player. Cristiano Ronaldo has brands, a business. And China is the biggest country in the world. So I told him what I always say: whoever gets the chance, has to go to China. "