Cristiano Ronaldo has finally given a definitive answer on his Real Madrid future, insisting that he intends to continue winning trophies with Los Blancos.
Reports stemming from Portuguese newspaper A Bola last month had claimed that the Portugal captain was on the brink of storming out on the Spanish and European champions after he felt that they weren't doing enough to protect him from Spanish tax charges.
But speaking to ?Marca this week, the Champions League's all-time leading goalscorer confirmed that he plans to stay at the Bernabeu for the foreseeable future, saying: "Winning major trophies with my club last year was great, just like the individual trophies. Doing it again would be good."
While his words may sound a little more lukewarm that Zinedine Zidane would have hoped, they remain significant - the 32-year-old publicly confirming for the first time that he intends to remain at the Bernabeu after a summer of internal turmoil at the home of the reigning Spanish champions.
He added: "You have to work hard, year after year, I will continue to do it. Football is my life, it is my passion."
Ronaldo's words echoed the sentiment expressed by Zidane in an interview with ?ESPN last week in which the Frenchman insisted that his leading man would remain in Madrid, saying: "In the end, Cristiano is one of us."
"He's going to stay with us. And that's it. He's on holiday as of today. He's resting, as he's deserved it. We wait for him to finish his holiday and join us."