Could Cristiano Ronaldo one day follow Sergio Ramos out of Real Madrid?

Cristiano Ronaldo is revered at Real but might prosper with a move next summer.
The ongoing Sergio Ramos "will he, won't he" watch has been filling the gossip pages this week, and as transfer sagas go it's a pretty good one, especially for Manchester United fans. Losing David de Gea would be a blow but there are other keepers of his stature knocking about. Ramos, on the other hand, has won everything there is to win and is behind only Iker Casillas and Xavi on the list of caps for the most successful national team of the modern era. It's not a bad trade by any means.

But the question of legacy has not really been broached during the stand-off between player and club. Ramos is a fan favourite and a player who has always worn his heart on his sleeve, his hand firmly clasped over the Real Madrid crest. He will surely take his place in the pantheon of Real Madrid greats, as will Iker Casillas when he finally does depart.

Real fans are quick to purse their lips but are slower to forget long and stellar service like that provided by Saint Iker of Mostoles and their adopted son from Sevilla. However, if Ramos does move to Old Trafford to shore up a pretty awful defence and helps United to the league title (or the Champions League), surely his stock as one of the greatest defenders in the game would be undeniable.

Cristiano Ronaldo may well be thinking along the same lines. The Portuguese has been the subject of a love-hate relationship at the Bernabeu for a few seasons now, largely stemming from a performance in a 3-0 win over Granada in September 2012. Ronaldo bagged a brace in the Bernabeu but refused to acknowledge either strike in front of the stands, later telling the media that he was "sad and the club knows why; that's why I didn't celebrate the goals."

Cue a bumper new contract and Ronaldo was all smiles again; that is more than likely Ramos' ploy. But the No. 7's relationship with the board and the Bernabeu has been under increasing scrutiny over the past season and while the rumour mill is currently feeding on the grist of Ramos, there is every chance Ronaldo could leave the Bernabeu next summer.
The ESPN FC panel discuss the recent report that Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos has told his club that he would like to leave.

PSG are reported to be scraping together between €100-150 million to lure the player to Paris while Manchester City would be willing to talk if Real are willing to sell. Taking into account that Ronaldo will be 31 at the end of the 2015-16 season, Florentino Perez won't be turning his mobile off next summer.

Why next year and not this? Records. There isn't much left for Ronaldo to achieve at Real Madrid. He has won the Copa del Rey, the league and the Champions League, as well as minor trinkets known as the Club World Cup and the Spanish and European Supercups. He has picked up two Ballon d'Or awards, a raft of Liga gongs and this week was voted a cuter kid than Leo Messiby ladies walking London's South Bank, which will no doubt appeal to his competitive nature. After all, image is everything and Ronaldo has rarely been shy about promoting his.

On the pitch, Ronaldo is only 10 goals short of Raul's all-time record for the club and at his current rate, he can expect to have overhauled that by September.

The appearance record is well out of reach but that isn't something that will concern him: Ronaldo exists purely to put the ball in the back of the net and, since his 2009 arrival at the Bernabeu, he has put the ball in the back of the net an awful lot: 313 in 300 games, or 1.04 goals per match. In the league, he is two shy of Alfredo di Stefano's tally (227), three short of Raul's and within easy reach of Hugo Sanchez (234). By Christmas, he will probably nip ahead of Telmo Zarra (251), who held the record for six decades before Ronaldo and Messi came along.

Neither should Ronaldo's exploits (or those of Messi) be diminished by the league in which they play. It's a common refrain: that they get to play the likes of Levante and Getafe every week is the case for the prosecution. But Ronaldo has bagged 18 against Sevilla, 15 against Atletico and 15 against Barcelona.

The mere notion that La Liga is also somehow inferior to the Premier League in terms of back fours is nonsense. Spanish defences are no easier to breach than Sunderland, Villa or newly promoted Norwich, all of who have shipped seven or more goals in the past three seasons in the English top flight. It happens more when Real are the opposition simply because Ronaldo is on the pitch, as is the case with Barcelona and Messi.Ronaldo might choose an exit, like Ramos, because he has accomplished all there is to accomplish at Real.

And it's precisely the shadow of Messi that could result in Ronaldo trying something different in 2016-17. The Argentina captain has a couple of years on Ronaldo and is 61 goals ahead of the Portuguese in the Liga stakes. The two are tied on 77 each in the Champions League and the age gap probably rules out Ronaldo nicking that one either before both players hang up their boots.

Ronaldo's obsession with being considered the best player of all time rests on two still tangible variables: dragging Portugal single-handedly to a major trophy, or doing the same at another club with grand designs on Europe's top club prize. His best chance of the former was arguably the 2004 European Championship, when the term "Grexit" should have been officially coined: the eventual champions barely left their half all tournament. In terms of the latter, Ronaldo still has time to lead a second-tier club in Champions League terms to the pinnacle of continental glory.