Ronaldo turned down Barcelona, says Calderon

The Portuguese star could have joined Real Madrid's rivals after erstwhile Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson "offered" him to the Catalans

Cristiano Ronaldo turned down the chance to join Barcelona before signing his world-record deal with Real Madrid, former ex-Blancos president Ramon Calderon has revealed.

The Portuguese star joined Madrid in 2009 for a fee of €94 million from Manchester United and has become a huge hit at the Santiago Bernabeu, winning the 2013 Ballon d'Or for his sensational performances for both club and country.

However, former Madrid president Calderon insists former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson attempted to engineer a move to rivals Barca for the attacker - but Ronaldo refused.

Asked whether the Scot tried to send Ronaldo to the Blaugrana, Calderon told talkSPORT: "It is totally true. In the few weeks he tried to avoid him going to Real Madrid, offering him to Barcelona. 

"Barcelona were very happy but in that moment it was very crucial as Ronaldo said: 'I'm not going to any other club but Real Madrid.'‏

"That's why we signed the deal. Everyone was happy: Manchester United got the £80 million [€94m], Real Madrid got the best player in the world and Cristiano got what he wanted because players like him are not only looking for money, they look for glory, and they look for anyone who is giving them that opportunity to win titles, to be the best in the world, to win golden boots.  

"There are only three, four or five clubs that can give him what he wants."

Ronaldo has scored 22 goals in 21 league appearances for Madrid this season, but it is his work ethic and determination that separates him from other players, according to the former Madrid chief.

"Cristiano is the best of the best because every day he gets up in the morning and his only obsession is to be the best. He wants to be better than the day before," Calderon continued.

"I always told players coming to Madrid that this is the most difficult time of your career because anyone who plays against Real is going to give 150 per cent of themselves in order to beat you. 

"I think it is very important for young players to understand how important it is every time you are playing or working to want to be the best.  I think that is the secret of Cristiano."

Chelsea have key advantage in Shaw battle with Manchester United

The 18-year-old Southampton defender could favour a move to Stamford Bridge, while David Moyes is keen on extending Patrice Evra's stay at Old Trafford

Luke Shaw is set to be the subject of a £20 million-plus (€24m) tug-of-war for his services in the summer.

Chelsea and Manchester United have made if clear through third parties that they are prepared to pay up to £25m (€30m) to land the Southampton left-back.

However, the Blues have a significant geographical advantage as they lay the foundations for their pursuit of the teenager, who does not turn 19 until July.

Shaw's parents live in Raynes Park, the south-west London suburb that is only a short drive to the west London club's Cobham training base.

However, Chelsea's bid to capture the left-back is complicated by the fact that he is represented by Stellar Group, the same management firm who represent Ashley Cole.

With Cole out of contract at the end of the season, Stellar will have to balance the interests of England's left-back for the last decade and their emerging star.

As reported by Goal, Manchester United made a £20m move for Shaw on January and the Premier League champions are expected to step up their bid to sign him in the next window.

Sources expect Shaw to join the club that Stellar advise him to, with all signs point to him leaving St Mary's Stadium this summer.

- By Wayne Veysey

MANCHESTER UNITED LAUNCH EVRA CHARM OFFENSIVE

STAY FOR EVRA
EVRA'S 2013-14 STATS
GAMES PLAYED GOALS ASSISTS	36 2 5

Manchester United have started a full-blown charm offensive to keep Patrice Evra at Old Trafford for another season.

The French left-back is out of contract this summer but has an option in his present deal that would allow him to activate a 12-month extension.

Evra was set on calling time on his Old Trafford career and it was revealed this week that Inter are at the front of the queue.

But the 31-year-old has held a series of heart-to-heart talks with boss David Moyes, who has stressed the defender's importance to the camp.

Evra has promised to now make a quick decision. United have also offered a £10,000 (€12,000) a week pay hike on his present £77,000-a-week (€93,000) wages to stay.

Kroos's brother hints at Manchester United move for Bayern Munich star

The Germany international is highly regarded by David Moyes and could be a primary summer target as the Scot looks to rebuild his squad after a disappointing season

Felix Kroos has hinted that his brother, Bayern Munich midfielder Toni, could be interested in a summer move to Manchester United.

The Germany international, who scored a stunning opening goal in his club's Champions League victory over Arsenal, was strongly linked with a January move to Old Trafford, given the 24-year-old's contract with his Bavarian employers is set to expire in 2015.

With talks over a new deal at the Allianz Arena continuing to stall, his brother, who plays for Werder Bremen, has now revealed that the siblings have talked about a potential switch to the Premier League champions.

Felix told Sky Germany: "We have already talked about [Toni potentially moving to Manchester United].

"Manchester has been the team of my dreams since I was a child. However, I don't give him any advice. 

"He will take a good decision for himself. There are worse situations than having to decide something like that."

Goal understands that Moyes is set to be handed a £100 million-plus (€120m) transfer kitty in the summer as he looks to rebuild his squad following what has thus far proved a disappointing 2013-14 campaign for the English champions

Did you know? : Mila Kunis is engaged to Ashton Kutcher

It's official! PHOTO: FILE

Actor-businessman Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis are engaged, reported E! Online. Kunis was spotted wearing a sparkling diamond on her left ring finger while out shopping in Los Angeles on Thursday. A source has revealed that the couple is planning to tie the knot.

Kutcher and Kunis met in 1998 as co-stars of the popular sitcom That ‘70s Show, in which they played an on-screen couple. They have been dating for almost two years. Kunis used to laugh off the early dating rumors as “absurd”. Their off-screen romance did not begin until April, 2012, months after Kutcher’s 2011 separation from ex-wife Demi Moore after six years of marriage.

“It’s amazing; they’re both great people, so I’m happy for them. Maybe they should get married. We’ll all go to the wedding and that could be the reunion. It’ll be a reality show,” Kurtwood Smith commented when Kunis and Kutcher started dating in 2012. Kurtwood Smith played the role of Red on the hit comedy series.

Did you know?: Sandra Bullock set to earn a minimum $70m for Gravity

Woah! Sandra Bullock must thank Angelina Jolie for pulling out of space thrillerGravity, as the role as a stranded astronaut in the film not only earned her an Oscar nod, but has made her a whopping $70 million.

The Oscar-nominated film has taken $703 million across the globe thus far, reports The Guardian. In what is a lucrative deal, Bullock will take home $20 million plus 15 per cent of the film’s dollar gross — in fact, 15 per cent of studio Warner Bros’share of the box office earnings.

She will also receive a part of the TV and DVD revenues. “The theatrical window is going to generate a third of the total revenue a movie will earn; it will get another third on DVD; and then the final third comes from pay and free TV,” said a source.

The actor received tremendous acclaim after her 2009 Oscar win for The Blind Side, which generated $309 million globally, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Gravity is one of the most profitable films of this year’s Best Picture Oscar nominees. In fact, the profits it garners will be more than those of all the other nominated films put together.

For this kind of money, it’s no surprised that Bullock gravitated towards Gravity!

Super heroes are taking over the silver screen

The impact Heroes had on the television landscape when it first launched in 2006 was enormous. PHOTO: FILE

NBC has announced that the axed sci-fi fantasy show, Heroes, will be coming back for a mini-series with 13 episodes. It is still uncertain whether any of the original cast members will be returning, however, the original creator of the show, Tim Kring will be directing once again.

“The enormous impact Heroes had on the television landscape when it first launched in 2006 was eye-opening. We’re thrilled that visionary creator Tim Kring was as excited about jumping back into this show as we were and we look forward to all the new textures and layers Tim plans to add to his original concept. Shows with that kind of resonance don’t come around often and we thought it was time for another instalment,” said NBC Entertainment President Jennifer Salke, reported express.co.uk.

The network revealed that the new series will feature a standalone plot line and new characters which will be introduced to viewers through a digital series released ahead of its return.

Last year, the comic book film production house, Marvel Studios, announced a deal with Netflix which says that the streaming entertainment service will premiere four original Marvel Studio TV series — Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist — before the shows’ eponymous characters (being residents of Hell’s Kitchen in Manhattan, NY) are featured together in an Avengers-style team-up mini-series, with The Defenders.

On Thursday, Marvel, Netflix Inc, The Walt Disney Company and NY governor Andrew M. Cuomo formally announced that, the upcoming series about the “flawed heroes of Hell’s Kitchen” will be principally filmed in New York. The official press release claims that the deal will result in the creation of thousands of jobs for locals. The filmmakers and heads of Marvel Studio will produce a total of 60 hour long episodes, with 13 episodes reserved for each individual Hell’s Kitchen superheroes and another 8 episodes based on The Defenders, reportedscreenrant.com.

Toil and trouble for Tinseltown

The Hollywood Sign, which is a US American cultural icon, is situated in Los Angeles, California. PHOTO: FILE

LOS ANGELES: Three days before the Oscars, the Los Angeles film czar and a think tank delivered some damning news to Tinseltown  — Hollywood’s status as the home of American film and television production is threatened because places like New York are offering better financial incentives to studios.

The study of employment and production data released on Thursday by the Milken Institute, an economic think tank, says California has lost tens of thousands of entertainment jobs to New York and other US states in the past decade, and film and television productions with them.

While it may be one of the best years for high quality film in recent memory, with nine strong films nominated for the Best Picture Oscar, just one of the nine was filmed in California.

Ken Ziffren, a veteran California attorney recently appointed as Hollywood’s film czar by the mayor of Los Angeles, said the report showed Hollywood was in a “bad spiral,” both in terms of jobs and productions leaving California.

Ziffren repeated a call for an expanded California film and tax credit, as did the Milken report — an issue that is politically controversial.

Proponents say it is vital to keep middle-class jobs and film production in the state. Opponents say wealthy Hollywood studios don’t need another tax break and question whether further financial incentives will produce a net gain in jobs and revenue.

The report by the Milken Institute, headquartered in Santa Monica, California, but with a national and international perspective, said California lost 16,137 film and TV industry jobs between 2004 and 2012, based on US Labour Department statistics.

During the same period, the report said, New York State gained 10,675 entertainment jobs. “California is losing film and television productions to New York and other states,” the report said. “The data shows that other states are being more effective in using their incentives to bring in new productions and create jobs.”

The report said the loss of jobs was particularly troublesome because it represented the exodus of middle-class wage earners with high pay, an average of $98,500 per person, and businesses that thrive on the movie industry, such as caterers.

Other states including Louisiana, Texas and New Mexico have also drawn jobs and production from California in recent years through tax credits.

The Milken report says that production in California hit its peak in 2004 when 128 films were made there, while 50 were filmed in New York. In 2012, other states offering incentives were involved in 142 films, compared with 104 in California.

Of the nine movies nominated for the Best Picture Oscar this Sunday, only Her, the science fiction romantic drama starring Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson, was made in California. It had a relatively low budget of $25 million.