Manchester City are in advanced negotiations to sign the 36-year-old forward from Juventus ahead of Tuesday’s transfer deadline.
Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri confirmed on Friday that Ronaldo wants to leave the Italian giants and the Premier League champions are the frontrunners to land him despite a late move from Manchester United.
Pep Guardiola is unsure about how he would suit his team, but is keen to have him as the Manchester City manager needs a striker.
Carragher admits that signing Ronaldo would be glamourous for Manchester City, but it would be a departure from their well thought out recruitment process.
He feels it seems like a panic buy and late-window reaction to missing out on signing their top target in Kane from Tottenham.
The former defender feels Manchester City should have tried to sign a younger forward rather than Ronaldo who is in the twilight of his glorious career.
Carragher wrote in his column for the Daily Telegraph: “If Cristiano Ronaldo joins Manchester City it will bring one of the world’s greatest ever players back to England, enthral the Premier League, and generate as much excitement as any deal completed by Sheikh Mansour.
“For the Premier League champions, it would be a statement signing.
“But for all the immediate razzmatazz Ronaldo’s arrival would generate, I am not convinced it is the kind of statement City should be making.
“There is a strong whiff of panic around Pep Guardiola’s pre-deadline day move, a knee-jerk reaction to the aborted mission to sign Harry Kane.
“When City’s fans think deeper about how and why this transfer is under serious consideration, they are entitled to feel a little concerned that the club is not unveiling one of the emerging superstars who might dominate European football for the next 10 years, but rather targeting one coming towards the end of his career.”
Ronaldo won three Premier League titles and a Champions League during his previous stint in England with Manchester United.
