CRISTIANO RONALDO SIGNING SEES REAL MADRID'S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE ODDS SHORTEN

£80 million. £80-freaking-million! That's how much Real Madrid have offered Manchester United for the services of one Cristiano Ronaldo. The Winking Wonder has had a few tumultuous and incredibly successful years playing in front of English fans and we've seen a boy mature into a man and a budding starlet become the best player on the planet.

The layers on Betfair weren't particularly confident in his departure and even just yesterday he was odds-on to stay. Not anymore, and a quick examination of the betting exchanges showed that Ronaldo has done something that the signature of Kaka couldn't do- lower their Champions League odds.

For the past while, Real Madrid to win the Champions League has been trading on Betfair at a lowest-price of around 10.0. It was 10.0 before they signed Kaka and 10.0 after they signed Kaka. Today it sits at 7.2 and continues to shorten. Real Madrid are now second favourites to win the 2009/10 Champions League ahead of Manchester United, who carry a 7.6 price behind the favourites Barcelona who can be backed at 5.6.

United's odds to win next year's Premier League have also lengthened a tad and they are trading at an even 3.0. Chelsea sit at 3.45 and Liverpool can be backed at 4.2. Arsenal are way behind at 9.6 with Manchester City listed at 28.0.

I'm a die-hard United fan and it's been a real pleasure watching this young talent mature into something the world hasn't seen before. His style of play and technical ability make him the world's most exciting player to watch (maybe not the best footballer, but surely the most exciting to the neutral fan) and I'm of a strong belief that the Premier League has lost one of its marquee talents.

However, hope springs eternal because the Glazier's have assured United supporters that the entire £80 million will be made available to Sir Alex Ferguson in addition to the £25-30 that had been previously allocated and the revenue from the sales of younger players like Darron Gibson, Frazier Campbell and Manucho.

Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema are obviously the two top names being bandied about and they could both be in a red uniform next year. The only issue now for United is the fact that teams now know they have silly money to spend. I also expect Carlos Tevez to re-sign knowing that there is now less competition for strikers.

And finally, Cristiano Ronaldo's departure will mean that Wayne Rooney will take back his preferred central striker position- the position he plays in for England. A full season and no metatarsal injury in April will get Rooney lean and mean and back into the upper echelons of the Premiership golden boot competition. A full season leading the line for the best team in the world will give England added firepower going into South Africa 2010.

Cristiano Ronaldo has taken a step down.