Did Al-Nassr’s made a mistake in signing Cristiano Ronaldo?

Al-Nassr failed to win their 10th Pro League title after Al-Ittihad won their first title in 14 years, even after the club brought Cristiano Ronaldo in the winter when they were top of the league, hoping to secure the title and win more titles with him.

Cristiano Ronaldo played 16 league matches in which he scored 14 goals and gave 2 assists, making him the 2nd highest team scorer after Talisca, who scored 18 goals in 22 matches. Al-Nassr gave Ronaldo a deal till 2025 and got the highest salary earned by any player in history, worth 177 million euros.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s contract was terminated after his bold interview with Piers Morgan in which Ronaldo criticized Manchester United management and the manager Erik ten Haq for leaving him on the bench in many matches.

The return of his old club, the Manchester United star player made his way to one more spell in the club where he became a star in football. Ronaldo returned to Man United on August 31st, 2021, from Juventus for a 13 million move.

In the 2021/2022 season, Ronaldo played 37 matches for Manchester United in which he scored 24 goals, but in mid-November and December, he stayed on the bench in most matches, which frustrated him. In an interview with Piers Morgan, he stated everything that made Man United terminate his contract. Al-Nassr took advantage of it and then signed Ronaldo for a record-breaking salary.

Ronaldo’s anger increased when he went to Al-Nassr as many saw him kicking a water bottle even when his team was 2-0 up, and he was not on the score sheet. Ronaldo has been judged as one of the most selfish football players.

The way Ronaldo behaves with his teammates increases the team’s tension, and it can be one of the reasons why Ronaldo’s influence might affect the performance of Al-Nassr’s other players.

“sometimes players are fooled by the big contracts they sign in Saudi Arabia”.

“But then life there is more closed and soccer is not always as easy as they expect, “Maybe he’s going through a period of disappointment and even reflection. Is the money he’s being paid to make up for the not-so-happy life he’s living right now?”

Rivaldo said to AS media