CR7 retires from top-flight football. But he is now again the highest paid kicker in the world.Image: www.imago-images.de / NurPhoto
Soccer International
Ex-world footballer Cristiano Ronaldo – undoubtedly an extremely polarizing personality – has plenty of baddies. When it became known the day before New Year’s Eve that the Portuguese was moving to Saudi Arabia, they must all have smiled a little.
After all, Ronaldo vehemently denied this rumor just three weeks ago. His goal is still to play at the highest level for a top club, i.e. in the Champions League. In the meantime, he has apparently buried these ambitions.
After losing his regular place at both Manchester United and the national team in 2022, So Ronaldo is now retiring from top-flight football and beginning the end of his career.
Will Sergio Ramos follow? Al-Nassr lures with money and Ronaldo
Many of Ronaldo’s benefactors must have lost their grins quickly when they found out that Al-Nassr sweetened the end of his career with an incredible 200 million euros a year. The 37-year-old is suddenly the highest-paid kicker in the world again.
The deal will not make his Saudi bosses poor, the money is apparently flowing freely from the club owners. Al-Nassr is also one of the most successful clubs in Saudi Arabia. But with the signing of Ronaldo, the club from Riyadh is now experiencing international interest for the first time. The club apparently wants to use this attention to lure more stars.
Like the Spanish”markreported that the Al-Nassr bosses are currently working on signing Real legend Sergio Ramos. Accordingly, club president Musalli Al-Muammar has already announced a trip to Madrid to advance the transfer.
“More going on in the district league”: Ronaldo threatens to play in an empty stadium
Ramos and Ronaldo played together for Real Madrid for nine years between 2009 and 2018. During this time, the head of defense and the goal machine won the championship twice and the European Cup four times.
Ramos (left) and Ronaldo (right) were the top performers in the “Royal” ensemble for nine years.Image: imago sport photo service / Agencia EFE
It is not unthinkable that Ramos can be lured to the Arabian Peninsula by his old buddy. At the latest with his move to Paris St. Germain in 2021, the 36-year-old Spaniard also initiated the end of his career. In the meantime, he has fought for a regular place there, but his contract ends in the summer, when he should move on a free transfer.
At the “Globe Soccer Awards” in Dubai in November, Ramos (right) received the award for the “best defender of all time”.Image: www.imago-images.de / imago images
The only question is what Ronaldo and Ramos would actually do in Saudi Arabia (apart from promoting their own pension plans). Al-Nassr is the second most successful club in the country with nine championships behind Al-Hilal. Most recently, the team won the title in 2019. Al-Nassr also plays in the Asian Champions League. The problem: the enthusiasm for football among the population is limited.
Amin Younes reveals: “The level of football is not as bad as many think. […] The big problem is the fan culture,” said the ex-German national player in an interview with “Sport1” after a six-month interlude in Saudi Arabia. “On good days, mind you, I played in front of 500 spectators. There’s more going on in the district league.”
Msool Park, the stadium where Al-Nassr plays its home games, has a capacity of around 25,000 spectators, but on average two-thirds is empty. Although superstar Cristiano Ronaldo should initially attract numerous fans to the stadium, this interest could also quickly ebb. It was similar at the World Cup in Qatar, where despite the top level of sport, some of the ranks remained empty.
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