Xabi Alonso urges Cristiano Ronaldo to consider Bayern move

Cristiano Ronaldo: No interest in China move

Xabi Alonso has hailed Cristiano Ronaldo as the “complete star” and admits he’d love a player of his calibre to sign for Bayern Munich.

Ronaldo is favourite to win this year’s Ballon d’Or after a brilliant year for Real Madrid and Portugal, who won the 2016 European Championships.

And Alonso – who spent five years alongside Ronaldo at Real Madrid winning La Liga and the Champions League – insists the Portuguese superstar would always be welcome at the Allianz Arena.

Although Ronaldo recently signed a new five-year deal at Real Madrid, the player has hinted they may not be his last club.

And Alonso has praised the player for adapting his game in recent years and becoming something of a penalty-area predator.

“Cristiano has adapted on the pitch. He’s not a central striker, [but] he wants to play closer to the area,” Alonso told Onda Cero. “He intuitively knows where the ball will go – a lot of goals are scored with his first touch.

“I think he’s done very well, having taken this step and getting closer to the area. As long as he’s getting 50 goals, I wish we had someone like him here. Cristiano’s numbers are amazing, indisputable.”

 

READ MORE: Ten alternative Ballon d’Or winners to Ronaldo or Messi

 

Alonso admits he has been surprised by the success of Zinedine Zidane in his first year in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The former France star won the Champions League and the UEFA Super Cup before setting Madrid firmly on course for their first league title since 2012 this term, all since taking over from Rafael Benitez in January.

“Of course Zidane has surprised me as a coach. I didn’t know how he would do,” said Alonso, whose final year in the Spanish capital was spent with Zidane as assistant coach to Carlo Ancelotti.

“He was helpful during the Decima year [in 2014]. He couldn’t have done better. He won the Undecima [11th Champions League title], they have a six-point advantage and they’re dominating.”