Eddie Howe cooled speculation he would want Cristiano Ronaldo at Newcastle even before it was reported that the striker has a clause in his Al-Nassr contract that would allow him to play for the Magpies next season.
Ronaldo had his contract unceremoniously terminated by Manchester United in November while he was on World Cup duty with Portugal following an explosive interview with Piers Morgan in which he claimed he has no respect for Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner was hoping to put pen to paper with a Champions League club but no one came forward with an offer for Ronaldo, prompting him to move to Saudi Arabia.
