Manchester United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz claims Cristiano Ronaldo has "all the affection and all the attention" he needs at Old Trafford, but insists not talking to the winger about his future is the right course of action at the moment.

Ronaldo's future at United remains up in the air with speculation still rife over a possible move to Real Madrid, although the Spanish club's president Ramon Calderon claimed yesterday he would not break the bank to sign the player.

Calderon also admitted there was little his club could do if United did not want to sell the 23-year-old, and Queiroz believes the best place for Ronaldo to ply his trade in the future remains Manchester.

Talks over his future are going to have to wait, however, after the player went on holiday yesterday.

"Manchester United is very special," Queiroz told Portuguese radio station Renascenca. "Because of that we know how to surround Cristiano completely with all the affection and all the attention he deserves.

"However, not speaking is the most sensible course of action at this moment, so that we don't contribute to a less than positive spectacle and so we don't aid those whose interests are difficult to identify."

Queiroz is something of a father figure to Ronaldo at United and was instrumental in keeping the player at Old Trafford in 2006 following his role in Wayne Rooney's dismissal in that year's World Cup quarter-final between Portugal and England.

His comments are in stark contrast to those recently made by manager Alex Ferguson which threatened the winger with reserve team football rather than a move to Madrid.

Calderon's stance, meanwhile, appears to have softened. He told  Marca: "There is no 'Cristiano Ronaldo case' because Manchester (United) do not want to sell.

"In any case, Real Madrid will never pay €100 million for anybody."

One man who isn't hiding his true feelings on the matter is Liverpool's Spanish defender Alvaro Arbeloa, who says he would be "delighted" if Ronaldo left for Real.

"If he leaves, Manchester United would lose the best player in the world," said the full-back today. "I would be delighted if Ronaldo leaves.

"Let's hope Real Madrid make an effort," he added. "For me it would be fantastic, I would thank them."