The La Liga giants are reportedly intensifying their chase for the wantaway Manchester United superstar.

Atletico Madrid have reportedly placed Antoine Griezmann on the transfer market as part of an attempt to bring Cristiano Ronaldo to the club. The Spanish heavyweights are said to have offered the French forward to potential suitors including Paris Saint-Germain, in a bid to free up space on their wage bill in order to accomodate the potential arrival of Ronaldo.

Earlier this week it emerged that the 37-year-old Portuguese could potentially be set for a shock return to La Liga. Having had an incredibly successful eight-year spell at Real Madrid, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner has been offered to cross-town rivals Atletico after by his agent. While the rumored transfer has divided opinion across both fanbases, it seems things are now moving swiftly for the completion of what could be one of the most bizarre transfers in recent memory.

According to Spanish publication AS, Atletico Madrid, who earlier ruled out the signing of Ronaldo, are now exploring avenues to accommodate the Portuguese superstar's acquisition. The club have reportedly listed Antoine Griezmann for transfer in other to secure enough money to fund the move for the United forward. However, the situation is quite complex.

Diego Simeone's team re-signed Griezmann on a loan deal last summer after his £107 million sale to Barcelona in 2019. Due to an obligation to buy for £34.4 million, the temporary move is expected to be made permanent in 2023 should some terms be fulfilled. In the case where Atleti are able to offload the French striker, the club will still be obliged to pay Barca the amount due and that is now what the club intends to do with their attention now on the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Meanwhile, Manchester United and Cristiano Ronaldo are reportedly set for cruchtalks in the coming days. According to the Guardian, the club will seek clarity from the player about when he intends to start training with Erik ten Hag's squad with time running out for the new manager to integrate the forward into his plans for the start of the new campaign.

The forward  was allowed to deal with some family issue in Portugal in what has been a prolonged break, He has missed pre-season tour and has not trained with the rest of the squad with just two weeks left before Brighton's visit to Old Trafford on 7 August.