Former Manchester United star Tomasz Kuszczak has claimed Cristiano Ronaldo was never going to sign for Manchester City. 

Was Cristiano Ronaldo close to joining Man City this summer?

It was reported late in the transfer window that the former Juventus star had agreed personal terms with the Premier League champions, after it had emerged that Harry Kane would be staying at Tottenham Hotspur

However, in the following days City pulled out of the race to sign the Real Madrid legend, with it becoming apparent that he was set to move to the other side of Manchester and re-join former club United. 

His arrival was subsequently confirmed by the club on Deadline Day.

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What has Tomasz Kuszczak said about Ronaldo joining City?

Despite what was reported during the summer, former Red Devils goalkeeper Kuszczak believes Ronaldo was never going to end up at the Etihad. 

Speaking on behalf of 888Sport, the ex-Poland international said: "For me as a Manchester United fan and former player, it wasn't even a question that Cristiano would go to Manchester City.

"I know Cristiano from my time at Man United and he loved the club. He always would say how much he loved it. It was a great time in his career for him. And, you know, he had the chance to work with Sir Alex Ferguson.

"I know from the fact that that we are all still connected to Sir Alex Ferguson, players feel the trust in him, and this was massive and for me what this meant was that it wasn’t even a question that Cristiano would go to City.

"Yes, it is a fantastic club, they’re going through a great spell, they’ve got great players and no doubt that you know they would love to have had Cristiano, but he was also going back to United."

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Could Ronaldo be the difference between Man United and Man City this season?

It shouldn't be forgotten that City finished twelve points ahead of United last season and reached the Champions League final. Whether any player, even one as enigmatic as Ronaldo, can single-handedly bridge that gap remains to be seen. 

Nonetheless, Ronaldo has provided United with the one thing City desperately lack - a reliable, goalscoring centre-forward. Whereas the Portugal international has already netted four times in three appearances for the Red Devils, City's best strike-rates this season have been provided by winger Riyad Mahrez (four in seven) and stand-in frontman Ferran Torres (three in seven).

Meanwhile, the only established centre-forward in Pep Guardiola's squad, Gabriel Jesus, has featured more as a right winger than a striker this season.

Sharpness at the top end of the pitch makes a big difference to any team, and while Ronaldo has given that to United, City will need to rely on numerous attacking players chipping in throughout the campaign.