United tell Ronaldo to show commitment

MANCHESTER, England (AP) -- Manchester United have told Cristiano Ronaldo there will be no new contract with a pay rise to match any offer from Real Madrid -- and that he must start displaying "commitment and loyalty."

But Ronaldo has again refused to commit his future to United, having spent the summer making no secret of his desire to move to Spain.

United chief executive David Gill believes that could have been a tactic to command a higher salary at Old Trafford.

"Possibly, but not necessarily," Gill said. "And if the figures bandied around that Real Madrid are talking about are true, we wouldn't go anywhere near that. That would be lunacy."

Such was United's anger at Madrid's pursuit of Ronaldo that manager Sir Alex Ferguson made an unsuccessful complaint to FIFA while his Portuguese winger was at the Euro 2008 finals.

Before taking United on a tour of South Africa, Ferguson flew to Portugal last week to meet with Ronaldo for the first time since the aftermath of May's Champions League triumph.

It prompted the Scot to state his confidence that Ronaldo would stay, but the player continued to fuel talk of a transfer while vacationing in California.

"What do you want me to say? That I'm going or I'm staying?" Ronaldo told ESPN. "I don't know about the future, only God knows it. I can't say any more.

"Great players are always hounded by great clubs. It's a normal situation."

Ronaldo, who is sidelined until at least October after ankle surgery, is ambiguous about his future. "Am I motivated to continue at United? I am always motivated," he said. "I am ambitious and I want to always improve. I don't know the future."

Gill accepts there are "some issues" to be resolved between Ferguson and the 23-year-old Portuguese international. But he said Ronaldo must remain on the contract worth £120,000 pounds ($240,000) a week, which has almost four years remaining on it.

"He only entered into the previous contract 18 months before and in terms of where he's at in our wage hierarchy he's doing pretty well," Gill said. "The player is under contract so the strength and the rights are with Manchester United."

The April 2007 contract was Ronaldo's third since joining from Sporting Lisbon in 2003. "With that, we believe, go some responsibilities and obligations," Gill said.

"There was an increased salary and we clearly feel there has to be some commitment and loyalty and he can't just say, 'I've entered into it, but I'll leave a year down the line,' especially after the season we've just had. It's a two-way street and contracts are entered into with a view to getting that kind of commitment," added Gil.

The Red Devils won the Premier League and Champions League double last season, but defender Rio Ferdinand believes the team's feat has been overshadowed by the speculation regarding Ronaldo -- who contributed 42 goals last season.

"This summer, given the season we've just had, should have been a time to think about our achievements," Ferdinand said. "In the end that became impossible because of the stuff going on with Cristiano.

"The players can't wait to see him back. There won't be any problems between Cristiano and the rest of the squad because we have always stood by what Sir Alex Ferguson has said all along -- Cristiano will be a United player next season."

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