WHAT IS CRISTIANO RONALDO'S PRICE TAG

Cristiano Ronaldo Wants  to become best paid footballer in the world  for £400,000 Per Week

Just weeks after revealing his "sadness" at Real Madrid, Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly  wants to be paid an astronomical £400,000 per week to stay with the Spanish giants.

The 27-year-old Portuguese star, who fired his first hat-trick of the season in Madrid's 5-1 win over Deportivo La Coruna in a league game, joined Madrid from Manchester United in 2009 for a world record fee of £80m. At the time, he was the world's highest paid footballer, with a wage of £200,000 per week (close to £8m a year).

Ronaldo has scored 155 goals in 153 games for Madrid but sources close to the club claim Spain's stringent tax laws may deter president Florentino Perez from sanctioning the wage increase demanded by his star player.

Under Spanish law, Real are required to pay 52 percent tax on Ronaldo's salary (up from an earlier 24 percent). While Ronaldo's reported wage demands would equate to an annual salary of £19.2m, local tax regulations would require a £28m outlay every year from Madrid.

Cristiano Ronaldo's ambition to become the world's best paid footballer is causing a growing rift with Real Madrid that has alerted Europe's big-spending clubs. 

Russian-owned Chelsea, along with Arab-backed Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain, head the list of interested parties as the 27-year-old agitates for a huge pay rise to bring him into line with high earner Samuel Eto'o.

 Cristiano Ronaldo 

TOP 10 BEST PAID PLAYERS IN THE WORLD

1 S Eto’o (Anzhi) £15.91m
2 Z Ibrahimovic (PSG) £11.54m
3 W Rooney (Man Utd) £10.98m
4 Y Toure (Man City) £10.34m
5 S Aguero (Man City) £9.95m
6 D Drogba (Shanghai) £9.55m
7 F Torres (Chelsea) £8.6m
8 D Conca (Guangzhou) £8.4m
9 L Messi (Barcelona) £8.35m
10 C Ronaldo (R Madrid) £7.98m 

Ronaldo's salary at Real sees him 10th in the high earners' list at £7.98million net, around half what Eto'o earns at rich Russian club Anzhi.

His immediate target is a 50 per cent increase to around £11.8million net. 

But the issue is complicated by Ronaldo's dissatisfaction at his image rights - 50 per cent of which are owned by the club - and Spain's revised tax laws. 

Ronaldo earns £13.45million from off-pitch deals. 

That means he is effectively paying his own wages at the Bernabeu. 

'I'm sad because of a professional issue and the club know why,' Ronaldo said this month. 

Ronaldo is governed by 'Beckham's Law', the regulation which stipulates Real must pay 24 per cent tax. 

But with Spain's economy in turmoil, that figure has been increased to 52 per cent. 

Bidding for Ronaldo would start at the £80million Real paid Manchester United for him in 2009.