2009–10 Manchester United F.C. season and United were knocked out on away goals. United announced early in the transfer window that they had agreed a world record fee of £80 million to sell Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid. Shortly after this, they confirmed that Carlos Tevez, who had been on loan with the club for two seasons, had not taken up the offer of a permanent contract. Tevez would later sign for United's local rivals, Manchester City. Lee Martin, Fraizer Campbell, Richard Eckersley and Manucho also left the club for an undisclosed fee. After the departures of Ronaldo and Tevez, United sought a new striker,
Leeds United F.C.–Manchester United F.C. rivalry him and his decision to join a rival club. The two sides have rarely met since Leeds' relegation from the Premier League. Recent polling by the Football Fans Census shows that while Leeds fans still consider Manchester United to be their main rivals, Manchester United fans consider Liverpool to be their main rivals, followed by Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal. On 3 January 2010, the teams met for the first time in nearly six years in an FA Cup Third Round tie at Old Trafford. Despite being 43 places lower in the league than their rivals, Leeds United won the