Bayern Munich CEO Oliver Kahn has said that the German champions "quickly dismissed" a potential move for Cristiano Ronaldo during the summer transfer window.
The 37-year-old is believed to have informed Manchester United at the start of July of his desire to leave the club in order to continue playing in the Champions League.
There was a host of speculation surrounding the Portugal international's future over the summer, with Bayern one of the first clubs to be linked with him when his exit plans become apparent.
Kahn has said that the Bundesliga giants "briefly discussed" signing the experienced striker, but it did not take them long to officially rule themselves out of the running.
"We briefly discussed Ronaldo at Bayern and [Borussia] Dortmund probably did too," Kahn told Bild. "We also see the big picture of the Bundesliga.
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"Of course, superstars like Ronaldo are an important factor in attracting attention to the league. He is one of the greatest of the last decade. But we quickly dismissed that."
Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Real Madrid are also believed to have been among those to turn down the chance to sign the Portuguese during the summer market.
Ronaldo has only started one Premier League match for Man United this season, while he has managed just one goal in nine appearances for the club in all competitions during the 2022-23 campaign.
The former Sporting Lisbon youngster had a number of chances to find the back of the net in Thursday's Europa League clash with Omonia, but he ultimately failed to register against the Cypriot outfit.
Ronaldo is likely to drop back down to the bench for Sunday's game with Everton, but Ten Hag said that he was pleased with the attacker's contribution to Thursday's European win.
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"I think the first two [shots he had produced] good saves from the goalie. He had a couple of chances, also he created a couple of chances. He was in for a good move and run for the first goal with Marcus Rashford, so he had an impact in this game," Ten Hag told reporters.
Galatasaray are the latest club to be linked with the attacker, and it is believed that the Turkish giants are lining up a mid-season move.
However, a recent report claimed that Man United remain confident of keeping hold of the striker, who was an unused substitute against Manchester City in the Manchester derby last weekend.
According to ESPN, there are a lack of suitors for Ronaldo ahead of the January window, and Red Devils head coach Erik ten Hag wants to keep him despite the recent speculation.
The forward has scored 143 goals and registered 63 assists in 339 appearances during two separate spells with Man United.
Matt Law
