While his future in Saudi Arabia remains uncertain, Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly turned down an offer from Fluminense, according to the club’s president Mário Bittencourt on the Setor Sul podcast. Just a few days ago, Ronaldo posted a cryptic message on social media hinting that his time at Al-Nassr might be coming to an end, sparking rumors about his next move.

Among those rumors was interest from Fluminense, who qualified for the Club World Cup as champions of the 2023 Copa Libertadores. Bittencourt said he reached out to Jorge Mendes, Ronaldo’s former agent, to explore the idea. “He told me clearly that Cristiano isn’t interested in Brazilian football right now. I even tried to convince him by saying Fluminense wears Portugal’s national colors, but it wasn’t enough,” said the president.

Neymar also said no to the offer

After failing to land Cristiano Ronaldo, the Rio-based club set their sights on another superstar: Neymar Jr.. According to Bittencourt, he got in touch with Renato Gaúcho, a close friend of Neymar’s, who then spoke directly to the player. Neymar was polite and suggested that talks go through his father, which the president agreed to—after asking for permission from the president of Santos FC.

The idea was to sign Neymar on a short-term loan just to play in the Club World Cup in the U.S., after which he’d return to the São Paulo-based club. Bittencourt said Neymar’s father was open to the conversation, but in the end, Neymar declined the proposal.

“Neymar himself said he felt honored, that he liked the idea, and that playing the Club World Cup would be a dream—but he prefers to use that month to recover physically,” Bittencourt added. Fluminense still has a bit of time to strengthen their squad for the tournament, where they’ll face Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan HD from South Korea, and Mamelodi Sundowns from South Africa in Group F.