"Personal commitments" have prevented Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo from facing Barcelona at the International Champions Cup in Miami.
Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo will not play
against bitter rivals Barcelona at the International Champions Cup on Saturday.
Ronaldo missed Madrid's first two ICC matches in
California – a penalty shoot-out loss to Manchester United and a 4-1 rout to
Manchester City – as he was vacationing with his pregnant girlfriend and in
Asia for sponsor commitments.
And the four-time Ballon d'Or winner – at the centre of accusations that he
defrauded Spanish tax authorities out of €14.7million after helping Madrid to
LaLiga and Champions League glory last season – will be absent from Miami,
despite organiser's best efforts.
"Unfortunately, Ronaldo's personal commitments
precluded him from being here," Relevent Sports chairman Charlie
Stillitano told the Miami Herald on Friday.
"He really wanted to be here. This is not a diva
situation. He was hoping that he could make it. He waited until today to let us
know, but it just didn't work out.
"Mr. [Stephen] Ross did everything possible to
get him here, and Cristiano said he was very grateful for that. I'm extremely
disappointed, but we still have the two best teams and the top stars minus
one."
Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross – who runs Relevent
Sports – pulled out all the stops to get Ronaldo to his stadium, including
having a private jet waiting for the 32-year-old Portuguese forward.
"We've reached out, we've done everything," Ross
said Thursday, per the Herald. "That weekend, he has some complex
issues as you all know, back in Spain. I've got a plane waiting. He hasn't said
finally no. We’ll probably know relatively soon."
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