The Times says Sir Alex Ferguson has become accustomed to what he believes are Real's deliberate attempts to unsettle Ronaldo, but as long as the two-time Footballer of the Year's form remains unaffected by the speculation, the United manager will resist the temptation to report the Spanish club to FFIA for their brazen courting of a player who has scored 41 goals this term.

That decision has been reached partly because United are reluctant to draw any more attention to an issue that has reared its head with alarming regularity in recent months, but also because they believe that there is little that Fifa, the world governing body, would be prepared to do.