‘It’s been a pleasure, bicho!’ Sergio Ramos leads tributes to outgoing Ronaldo

Real Madrid captain Sergio Ramos has led the tributes to former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, whose €118 million transfer to Juventus was confirmed Tuesday, referring to the winger as “bicho”, Portuguese for “bug”.

Writing on Twitter in Spanish and in English, Ramos said: “Cristiano, your goals, your numbers and everything we've won together speak for themselves.

READ MORE: Official: Cristiano Ronaldo joins Juventus from Real Madrid

“You have earned a special place in the history of Real Madrid. As Madridistas we'll remember you always. It's been a pleasure to play alongside you, bicho. Big hig [hug] and good luck!”

In Ronaldo’s nine years at Real, the player scored 451 goals in 438 games, helping the club to four Champions League titles, three of them consecutively in the last three seasons. Personally, the player achieved four Ballon d’Or titles in that time.

An old teammate who will become Ronaldo’s new teammate at Juventus, Sami Khedira posted his delight at Ronaldo joining the Turin club. The two played together during Khedira’s time at Real.

“Benvenuto a Torino, Cristiano. We had a great time together in Madrid, I can‘t wait to get back to work with you! Today is a special day for Juventus,” he wrote.

Also saying goodbye was Real Madrid defender Theo Hernandez, who wrote: “A pleasure to have played alongside the best in the world. I wish you the best in your new stage.”

Ronaldo leaves Real as the club’s all-time top scorer, and will earn a reported €30 million ($35 million) per year at the Italian giants.