Florentino Perez has emphasised how important it would be for Real Madrid to capture Cristiano Ronaldo this summer.
Real were strongly linked with a move for the Portuguese winger last summer but Manchester United stood firm and refused to sell.
United's stance has not changed and Ronaldo has also made it clear that he plans to stay at Old Trafford next season, but that has not stopped renewed speculation about a possible switch.
Perez, who is expected to regain the Real presidency this week, is keen to bring in Ronaldo to boost the club's image and finances.
He believes it is as essential to sign the 24-year-old as it was to get David Beckham from United in 2003.
"Madrid should have bought Cristiano Ronaldo as Beckham's replacement two years ago," Perez said in the Sunday Times.
"When Beckham arrived, our sponsors significantly raised their payments to us and we rescued the finances of the club.
"What happened in the last few years is that the club did not reinvest in the type of players to continue with that model.
"I want to put that right. If Cristiano Ronaldo comes in, we would have a Nike-endorsed player putting on an adidas shirt every week."
Perez has outlined a vision for Real that would once again see some of the most high-profile names in world football arriving at the Bernabeu.
"In the previous time, we established a model which allowed us to pay off our debts and raise our income, and we did it by investing in great players," said Perez, who also hopes to sign Kaka and Franck Ribery.
"They brought money in, the model worked."
Perez does not feel the likes of Beckham and Zinedine Zidane have been adequately replaced.
He explained: "I won't suggest that Beckham did not have to leave in 2007 or that Zidane did not have to in 2006, but we should then have brought in Kaka and Ronaldo."