Portuguese professional footballer Cristiano Ronaldo has recently signed a deal with Saudi Arabia-based club Al Nassr for $200 million following his exit from Manchester United football club. Ronaldo, after the announcement of the deal, landed in the country and interacted with fans. Al-Nassr, which is based in Riyadh and competes in Saudi Pro League, announced the signing of one of the world's biggest sports stars on social media on Friday, December 30, and within 24 hours the post received more than 20 million views and the club gained about 2.5 million more followers.
Ronaldo's new coach Rudi Garcia, post this announcement, welcomed the free agent and jokingly claimed that he wanted to bring Argentina's World Cup-winning skipper Lionel Messi before the 37-year-old athlete. The Spanish tactician, while speaking to the press ahead of Ronaldo's unveiling ceremony at Mrsool Park, said, "First I wanted to bring Messi from Doha.''
Ronaldo has won five European Champions Leagues with Real Madrid and Manchester United, but his controversial second tenure at the English club ended after 15 months with him as a bench regular without trophies and out of contract after it was prematurely terminated.
"The signing of a player the size of Cristiano Ronaldo is extraordinary, and contributes to the development of Saudi football," said Garcia. "We are happy with his arrival. The first goal is to work so he can adapt to our team, to enjoy playing for Al-Nassr, and to entertain the fans," he added.
Reportedly, the Saudi-based football club had made offers to many big players after successfully signing Ronaldo. As per media reports, Ronaldo’s former teammates at Real Madrid — Sergio Ramos and Luka Modric — have also been approached by the club and offered huge contracts.
Ronaldo was reportedly still looking for a European club to sign him after Portugal's exit from the FIFA World Cup 2022’s quarterfinals in Qatar. However, he didn’t receive any offers from top-tier European clubs and his massive wage demands were ruled out by the smaller ones.
Ronaldo is likely to receive $75 million per year, earning him the title of the highest-paid footballer in history.
(With inputs from Associated Press)
