Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has claimed Cristiano Ronaldo is the 'greatest' player he has signed at the Bernabeu.
Perez has spent more than 15 years as Madrid chief across two spells since 2000. He oversaw the club's infamous Galactico period, during which the likes of Zinedine Zidane, Kaka, and David Beckham all moved to the Spanish capital.
But the club's president believes signing Ronaldo from Manchester United in 2009 for a then-world record fee of £80million was his best bit of business.
'Cristiano was an exemplary professional who never caused problems,' he told Onda Cero.
'He's the greatest player I ever signed and my relationship with him was always excellent, both as a player and a man.'
Ronaldo swapped Madrid for Juventus last summer after winning 16 trophies in the Spanish capital. But Perez insists his departure was not fuelled by any bad blood.
'I assumed he wanted new challenges and he took advantage of that moment to embrace them,' he said. 'We didn't have any problems regarding money.
'There were rumours about him wanting to leave because of the tax case, but that's not the reality of the situation. He wanted a change and to improve his contract, so he found it at Juventus and everyone was happy.'
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