Cristiano Ronaldo is, as ever, the talk of the Spanish transfer press, with a sprinkling of Lionel Messi for good measure.

Sport, the Catalan daily newspaper, reported yesterday that Jorge Mendes, the Manchester United forward’s agent, has signed a long-term agreement with Real Madrid worth about £91 million.

The deal reportedly includes a penalty clause that would force Ronaldo and his agent to pay Real €20 million (about £18 million) if he does not appear at the Bernabéu at the start of next season.

The accuracy of the news as reported by Sport is dubious, not least because there would be a slew of highly paid lawyers beating down Mendes’s door if he had signed on behalf of Ronaldo. However, Real used a similar tactic in 2000 when they lured Luís Figo from Barcelona. Whether such a “penalty clause” would be enforceable is another matter. A further wrinkle is that this supposed contract was signed with Ramón Calderón, who resigned as president of Real two weeks ago. Whether it would be valid now is anyone’s guess.

Either way, the Ronaldo-to-Real drumbeats continue unabated. The Madrid club’s players are asked to weigh in on Ronaldo daily, with Christoph Metzelder, the Germany defender, saying yesterday that he thought that Messi, the Barcelona and Argentina forward, was better. Which may explain why Barcelona are reportedly firing back with big plans of their own.

Bild, the German newspaper, reported that the Catalan club have earmarked ¤60 million to sign the Bayern Munich duo of Philipp Lahm, the Germany full back, and Franck Ribéry, the France winger. Fanciful numbers, perhaps, but Ribéry is very much on the market. “I would by no means say it’s certain I will see out my contract at Bayern,” he said this month. Uli Hoeness, the Bayern general manager, limited himself to saying: “We have not received a formal offer from Barcelona for Lahm and Ribéry.”

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