Cristiano Ronaldo made his official debut for Manchester United against  Bolton Wanderers on August 16, 2003. (Photo from Planet Football)

12 years had passed, yet Cristiano Ronaldo still remembers the deafening cheer inside the Old Trafford pitch while he was playing.

The "Viva Ronaldo" chants are a resounding battlecry to keep himself busy leading and aspiring the team packed with young blood to succeed as a new chapter of his football career unfolded.

In an exclusive interview with Manchester United's media team, CR7 expressed his gratitude and willingness to make the club's fans delighted once again after transferring from Juventus via a 15-million euro deal.

"The fans are the key. I'm so glad [to] the Manchester United fans, they are special." the five-time Ballon d'Or awardee said.

"I know I remember very well. I know they're still singing my music which makes [me] happier, and my commitment is to give everything in the pitch as I did before. I do it all the time and try to do my best. Help the team score goals, assist, win games, and I hope to see them very, very, very soon." the 36-year-old Portuguese footballer added.

Wearing jersey number 7, recently worn by United legends George Best, Eric Cantona, and David Beckham, fans welcomed Ronaldo with a standing ovation in his official debut coming off the bench in August 16, 2003.

Even Best himself praised the Funchal, Madeira native's brilliant performance as a substitute.

"Well, you know I had a fantastic history with this amazing club. I was there 18 years old and of course, I'm so happy to be back home after 12 years. I'm really glad and looking forward to starting my first game." the 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year told.

In his six-season stint at England, Ronaldo became a vital cog for United's three-peat run in EPL from 2006-2009, two Football League Cup tilts in 2005-2006 and 2008-2009, and titular triumphs in the FIFA Club World Cup (2008), UEFA Champions League (2007-2008), FA Community Shield (2007), and FA Cup (2003-2004).

Scoring a total of 118 goals in his 292 appearances for Man United, he tallied his last goal from a free kick during the Manchester derby at their home turf on May 10, 2009.

Ronaldo's sensational comeback is set to happen against Newcastle United on Saturday, September 11.

Cristiano Ronaldo registered his 600th league appearance while wearing the Juventus jersey facing Spezia last March 2, 2021 at the Turin, Italy. (Photo from AFP)

Role to play

In terms of role, Ronaldo said he will wait for his former teammate and now, coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's decision while making himself available for anything.

"Well, we had a chat, but of course I'm going to have time to speak with him face to face, to know what he expects."

Both played for 32 games together between 2003-2007, but Solskjaer's got plagued with injuries, thus, forcing him to hang his boots.

And destiny forged a reunion but with different integral spots to fill in, as Ole looks to build the lost glory of Manchester United this season after a dismal 2020-2021 season, while Ronald aims to bring the same winning culture he brought in Juventus.

"As you know, I played with him for two or three years at Manchester United so I have a good relationship with him but now with a different role, I'm a player and he's a coach." said Ronaldo who led Juventus to back-to-back Serie A trophies (2018-2020), two Supercoppa Italiana (2018, 2020), and a Coppa Italia (2020-2021) before leaving the club.

"But it doesn't matter, my relationship with him is great and as I say before, I'm there in Manchester to help the team achieve his results and the coach can count on me for whatever he wants." the 2019 and 2020 Serie A Footballer of the Year and 2020-2021 Capocannoniere winner furthered.

"So I'm available for everything."

In a brink of long misery, the Ole-mentored booters fell short of earning their 21st EPL crown after placing second behind Manchester City followed by a quarterfinal exit in the FA Cup, and a semi-final ending in the EFL Cup. They also lost in the group stages of the UCL and finals of the UEFA Europa League.

Cristiano Ronaldo became the international football's all-time leading scorer after finding the back of the net twice against Republic of Ireland to surpass Iranian forward Ali Daei's previous record of 109 goals. (Photo from Getty Images)

Father figure

If there's someone who greatly influenced Ronaldo to make a return, he is no other than the Scottish general manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

With rival Manchester City almost signing him, Ronaldo told that Ferguson spelt the difference as the latter reached him out and ultimately sealed his fate to rejoin Man Utd.

"For me, Sir Alex Ferguson is like a father in football for me. He helped me a lot, he taught me many things, and in my opinion of course he had a big role because of the relationship that we had, we keep in touch all the time, and he's an unbelievable person."

"I really like him a lot and he was the main key for me to be in the position that I am, that I signed for Manchester United." he concluded.

Ferguson got interested in Ronaldo after the United loss to the latter's Sporting CP in an inauguration match held at Estádio José Alvalade in August 2003, 3-1.

With his players all agreeing to sign the then 18-year-old young star, Ferguson went on a £12.24 million deal with the Portugal-based FC to get Ronaldo — became the most expensive teenager in English football history at that time.

From that point, the two established a strong bond that paved the way for Ronaldo's evolution and team success.

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