Ronaldo ‘Happy’ in Saudi Arabia, Wants Other Top Players to Join Him

Soccer Football - Saudi Pro League - Al Nassr v Al Shabab - KSU Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - May 23, 2023 Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring their third goal REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri
Soccer Football - Saudi Pro League - Al Nassr v Al Shabab - KSU Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - May 23, 2023 Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring their third goal REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri
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Ronaldo ‘Happy’ in Saudi Arabia, Wants Other Top Players to Join Him

Soccer Football - Saudi Pro League - Al Nassr v Al Shabab - KSU Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - May 23, 2023 Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring their third goal REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri
Soccer Football - Saudi Pro League - Al Nassr v Al Shabab - KSU Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - May 23, 2023 Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring their third goal REUTERS/Ahmed Yosri

Cristiano Ronaldo said he is happy in Saudi Arabia and hopes other big-name players will follow him to the league for the next campaign.

Ronaldo signed a 2-1/2 year contract with Al Nassr, making his debut in January.

He scored 14 goals in 16 games but it was not enough to help his side win the Saudi Pro League (SPL) title, with Al Nassr finishing second behind Al Ittihad.

The 38-year-old, who missed the final matchday due to injury, said the league was very competitive but that there were many opportunities to grow.

"We have very good teams, very good Arab players, but the infrastructure - they need to improve a little bit more."

"But I'm happy here, I want to continue here, I will continue here," he added, Reuters reported.

Ronaldo said he had adapted to life at the club, though there were many differences from his time at Europe.

"In Europe we train more in the morning and here we train in the afternoon, or night. When you start Ramadan, we train at 10 o'clock in the night." he added.

Since Ronaldo's arrival, several other top players have been linked with a move to the Saudi league, with Lionel Messi receiving a formal offer to join Al-Hilal next season.

Ronaldo's former team mate and Ballon d'Or winner Karim Benzema has reportedly received an offer worth more than 100 million euros from Al Ittihad.

"If they are coming, big players and big names, young players, 'old players', they are very welcome," said Ronaldo.

"If that happens, the league will improve a little bit. Age is not important."



Neymar Suspects Latest Injury Nothing More Serious than Cramp

Football - Asian Champions League - Group B - Al-Ain v Al-Hilal - Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates - October 21, 2024 Al-Hilal's Neymar during the warm up before the match. (Reuters)
Football - Asian Champions League - Group B - Al-Ain v Al-Hilal - Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates - October 21, 2024 Al-Hilal's Neymar during the warm up before the match. (Reuters)
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Neymar Suspects Latest Injury Nothing More Serious than Cramp

Football - Asian Champions League - Group B - Al-Ain v Al-Hilal - Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates - October 21, 2024 Al-Hilal's Neymar during the warm up before the match. (Reuters)
Football - Asian Champions League - Group B - Al-Ain v Al-Hilal - Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates - October 21, 2024 Al-Hilal's Neymar during the warm up before the match. (Reuters)

Neymar was not too downcast after being forced to leave Monday's Asian Champions League Elite match due to injury with the Al-Hilal forward saying he felt the issue was nothing more than a strong cramp.

The Brazilian, who limped off 30 minutes after coming on as a second-half substitute in Al-Hilal's 3-0 win over Esteghlal, said doctors had warned him about the potential for muscle issues following his return from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.

The 32-year-old returned to action two weeks ago, having been out since Brazil's CONMEBOL World Cup qualifier against Uruguay in October last year when he suffered the injury.

"It felt like a cramp, only very strong!" Neymar posted on Instagram. "I'm going to have some tests and I hope it's nothing too serious.

"It's normal for this to happen after a year, the doctors had already warned me, so I have to be careful and play more minutes."

Neymar has played only seven games for Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal since moving from Paris St Germain in August last year.