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Ronaldo joins Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr

You are currently viewing Ronaldo joins Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr
epa10383111 A handout photo made available by the Saudi Al-Nassr Club on 30 December shows Portuguese soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo posing for a photograph with the club's jersey after signing with Al-Nassr, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Al-Nassr Club announced on 30 December that Ronaldo signed a contract that runs untill 2025. EPA/AL-NASSR CLUB HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Cristiano Ronaldo has signed for Al Nassr of Saudi Arabia in a deal believed to be worth more than €200 million, the club announced.

The 37-year-old has since put pen to paper on a two-year contract which will keep him at the club until June 2025.

“I can’t wait to discover a new football league in a different country,” said the former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus player.

The Portuguese star was pictured on the Al Nassr Twitter feed holding a blue and yellow shirt with his favoured number seven printed on the back.

“The vision with which Al Nassr operates is very inspiring, and I am delighted to join my teammates, so that together we can help the team achieve greater success,” he added.

“This is more than history in the making. This is a signing that will not only inspire our club to achieve even greater success but inspire our league, our nation and future generations, boys and girls to be the best version of themselves. Welcome @cristiano to your new home @alnassr_fc,” tweeted the Saudis.

Ronaldo is going to the Gulf after a year in which Portugal put him on the bench and Manchester United let him go.

United cut ties with the Portuguese star after the veteran forward said in an explosive TV interview that he felt “betrayed” by the club and had no respect for coach Erik ten Hag.

United ended his contract while he was at the World Cup with Portugal.

Ronaldo’s bid to win a World Cup winner’s medal got off to a good start when he scored from the penalty spot in their win over Ghana. He was the first player to score in five global tournaments.

But he wasn’t in the starting lineup for their Round of 16 game against Portugal, which Switzerland lost badly.

When Portugal lost to Morocco in the quarterfinals, he started the game on the bench and ended the tournament in tears.

Ronaldo has been one of the highest-paid football players for a long time.

His reported salary at Juventus was 31 million euros, but the Turin club’s books are being looked at to see if they may have understated how much they paid players.

Even though he took a pay cut to come back to United, he was still one of the best-paid players in Europe. His basic annual salary, which does not include bonuses, was said to be between 15 and 28 million euros.

As his relationship with United got worse, Ronaldo was linked to a number of teams that were in the running for the Champions League. These teams included Chelsea, Bayern Munich, and Napoli.

It was also said that he might go back to his first club, Sporting in Lisbon. Inter Miami, which is part-owned by former Manchester United teammate David Beckham, was mentioned as a possible move to the Major League Soccer. None of those deals worked out in the end.

United decided they didn’t need him anymore because he wasn’t helping as much as he used to and his public dissatisfaction was growing.

Photo by EPA/AL-NASSR CLUB