Manchester City are closing in on the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo from Juventus (Picture: Getty)

Manchester City’s first team squad are emphatically backing the club’s pursuit of Cristiano Ronaldo who appears to be on the verge of returning to the Premier League.

The 36-year-old is said to have taken the decision to leave Juventus in the belief that the recently dethroned Italian champions are in no position to compete for this season’s Champions League title.

After seeing their hopes of signing Harry Kane dashed earlier this week, City have quickly turned their attention to securing the services of Ronaldo, who would fill the void created by Sergio Aguero’s departure at the end of last season.

Cristiano Ronaldo has emptied his locker and is ready to leave Juventus for Man City (Picture: Getty)

Despite smashing the British transfer record by spending £100million on Jack Grealish earlier this summer, there remains a gaping hole in City’s squad that was unlikely to be filled adequately by the likes of Gabriel Jesus or Ferran Torres.

Both players impressed during last weekend’s 5-0 thrashing of Norwich, but City’s attack was easily nullified by Leicester City in the Community Shield earlier this month, while Spurs were also successful in keeping a clean sheet in their opening weekend Premier League success against the Champions.

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Signing Ronaldo would represent a ready made solution to the one concern Guardiola has about his current squad, while City’s players are said to be excited about the prospect of the former Manchester United star’s imminent arrival.

According to the Telegraph, several players are of the belief that Ronaldo would hugely benefit the team in a conventional No.9 role.

Joao Cancelo, who has played with Ronaldo at club and international level, has also been quizzed about how the Portugal captain trains and the work he does outside team sessions away from the training ground.

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