Seeds were sown on that glory night in Moscow as winger shunned the party ; Deputy Sports Editor and Man United fan Steve Cording knew the star would leave [Edition 3]

Summary

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IT was 2am in Moscow's Olympic Stadium just over 12 months ago when I first noticed it. Manchester United had just won the Champions League by beating Chelsea on penalties and all those in red shirts were celebrating with their fans, except for two.

Cristiano Ronaldo and team-mate Anderson were standing on the half-way line, arms folded, deep in conversation. I pointed it out to the friend with whom I had travelled to Moscow. "He's talking about leaving," I quipped. "Never", came the reply.

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Extract

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Seeds were sown on that glory night in Moscow as winger shunned the party ; Deputy Sports Editor and Man United fan Steve Cording knew the star would leave [Edition 3]

Yet, deep down, we both knew he was on his way. Unlike Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville, Ronaldo is not a local lad. The affiliation he feels for the cl...

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