The Spanish La Liga Powerhouse has put in $131.7 million bid for Portuguese player Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United has accepted.  The signing will set a new world record, coming on the heels of Real Madrid’s purchase of Brazilian striker Kaka from AC Milan for $94 million earlier this week.

Ronaldo has been a scoring machine for the English side, netting 42 in the 2007-08 season and 26 in 2008-2009.  The 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year has made 292 appearances for United, scoring a total of 118 goals.

Manchester United supporters around the world are reacting to the news in various ways.  Some are concerned, some are optimistic, some are actually glad to see him go.  Cristiano has a specific flair which seems to polarize fans into camps of either loving him or hating him; but both ends of the spectrum have to agree that the boy gets the job done.  I’m not terribly upset to see him off.  Ronaldo has expressed interest in leaving England for several years and speculation has plagued the media constantly.  Now United Manager Sir Alex Ferguson has an answer.  And he also has 80 million quid in his coffer.  That kind of money could easily fetch a Franck Ribery, or a Karim Benzema, or even an Arjen Robben.  Ronaldo is incredibly talented, but he’s not irreplaceable.   it will be interesting to see how things shape up this Summer in the transfer market.

It will also be interesting to see how Kaka and Ronaldo mesh at Real Madrid.  And if you get tickets before June 12th at 10 AM, you can see for yourself as the Spaniards come to DC United in August.

Thanks for all your work, Cristiano. Now bugger off.  Roll on Benzema.