Manchester United have identified Portugal striker Goncalo Ramos as a replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo, as per Spanish outlet Fichajes.

The 37-year-old entered the final year of his contract at Old Trafford when the season began. He tried to engineer an exit in the summer but nothing materialized.

It took an explosive interview with Piers Morgan to push Manchester United over the line and begin the proceedings of Ronaldo’s premature exit. The two parties parted ways last month via mutual consent.

The Portugal icon started only four Premier League games under manager Erik ten Hag but a player of his caliber and ability would definitely leave a void upon his exit. The Red Devils have seemingly earmarked his international teammate to do the job.

Ramos, who is with Portugal’s No. 7 in manager Fernando Santos’ 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, is a highly-rated striker at Benfica. He has scored nine goals and provided three assists in 11 Liga NOS games this campaign.

The attacker recently made headlines after scoring a hat-trick against Switzerland in the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals. Cristiano Ronaldo was surprisingly left out of the starting XI in Ramos’ favor, who made the most of his opportunity.

Following the 6-1 win against the Schweizer Nati, Ramos’ stock would have definitely risen. He is said to be valued at around €50 million by the Eagles and has a little over three and a half years left on his deal at the Estadio da Dragao.