Tag: Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo chose the pettiest time to endorse the Saudi League over MLS after Lionel Messiโ€™s move

What an absolutely insecure comment.

In the primes of their career, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo had one of the greatest rivalries in soccer history as members of Barcelona and Real Madrid, respectively. To this day, both are primary subjects of a Men’s GOAT soccer debate, one that, by now, Messi has won handily with seven Ballon d’Or trophies to Ronaldo’s five and one World Cup trophy to Ronaldo’s zero.

But that hasn’t stopped Ronaldo from taking apparent potshots at Messi here and there, showing he’s probably a little bitter that Messi will have left behind a better legacy when all is said and done.

The latest example comes from Ronaldo’s strange comparative endorsement of the Saudi Pro League during a press conference. After a high-profile transfer from Manchester United, the superstar joined the league in January 2023. And at literally any time since January, Ronaldo could’ve endorsed the overall quality of his new league. At any time, he could’ve professed how much it apparently pushes him as an athlete.

Instead, he chose to talk up the Saudi League while bashing the MLS just days after Messi officially joined Inter Miami and began practicing with them. Hmm, curious timing!

Ronaldo can endorse his own decision to take $220 million to play wherever he wants. That is his prerogative.

But it is impossible to see his juxtaposition as anything but a passive-aggressive shot at Messi joining the MLS, given the timing. Even after definitively losing the all-time battle, the man clearly hasn’t quite let go of his rivalry with the fellow all-time Argentinian great.

Cristiano Ronaldo: Saudi league is better than MLS

After Messi’s move to MLS, Ronaldo unsurprisingly had some thoughts

After his longtime rival Lionel Messi completed a move to MLS, Cristiano Ronaldo couldn’t help but offer his assessment of the North American top flight.

In comments that will surprise no one, the Al Nassr striker said he believes the Saudi Pro League is superior to the league Messi now calls home.

“The Saudi league is better than MLS,” Ronaldo told a press conference after he was asked about the chance of following Messi to North America.

Speaking after Al Nassr fell 5-0 to Celta Vigo in a preseason friendly, Ronaldo claimed some credit for being the first of what now seems to be a constant stream of big-name players moving to the Saudi league.

“I opened the way to the Saudi league, and now all the players are coming here,” the Portugal star said.

He added: “In one year, more and more top players will come to Saudi. In a year the Saudi league will overtake the Turkish league and Dutch league.”

While he ruled out the possibility of moving to MLS, Ronaldo also emphasized that after a record-filled run with Sporting CP, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus, he will not be returning to Europe.

“I’m 100 percent sure I won’t return to any European club,” Ronaldo said. “I’m 38 years old. And European football has lost a lot of quality. The only valid one and still doing good is theย Premier League. They’re way ahead of all the other leagues.”

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Ahead of spending spree, Saudi fund takes over four teams

In its pursuit of big names, Saudi Arabia will aim to overwhelm the competition financially

Four of the biggest clubs in Saudi Arabia have been taken over by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the country’s sovereign wealth fund.

PIF, which also owns Newcastle United, will take a 75 percent stake inย Al Ittihad, Al Hilal, Al Ahli and Al Nassr. The remaining 25 percent of those clubs will be held by non-profit foundations.

“Four Saudi clubs … have been transformed into companies, each of which is owned by PIF and non-profit foundations for each club,” a statement said.

“The transfer of the four clubs will unleash various commercial opportunities, including investment, partnership and sponsorships across numerous sports.”

Saudi Arabia has been aiming to turn its league into a destination for some of the world’s top talent. In order to sign some of the biggest stars, the PIF has undertaken the same strategy that its nascent LIV Golf tour has: offer more money than anybody else could dream.

Cristiano Ronaldo became the worldโ€™s highest-paid athlete after his move to Al Nassr, according to Forbes, with an annual compensation of an estimated $136 million.

Real Madrid legend Karim Benzema is set to join Al Ittihad and will be paid a reported $643 million over a three-year deal.

The crown jewel, of course, is Lionel Messi, who is already a paid spokesman for Saudi Arabia’s tourism bureau. The Argentine superstar has left PSG as a free agent, and has reportedly been offered somewhere between $375 to $642 million per year to join Al Hilal.

Messi’s father Jorge said on Monday that the 35-year-old “would love to return to Barcelona,” but it remains to be seen if the Blaugrana have the capability to even make an offer amid the club’s ongoing financial difficulties.

Inter Miami is also pushing to make Messi one of the biggest signings in MLS history. But Miami, like Barcelona and every other club, will be well aware that if a team in Saudi Arabia really wants a player now, they won’t be outspent.

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Messi breaks Ronaldo’s goal record in Europe’s top five leagues as PSG wins Ligue 1

Messi made it 496 goals between Barca and PSG

It has to be said: Lionel Messi loves a big occasion.

Messi scored his 496th goal in a top five European league, pushing him ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo as the most prolific scorer in those leagues ever. The goal, in a 1-1 draw at Strasbourg, happened to be the one Paris Saint-Germain needed to assure themselves of yet another Ligue 1 trophy.

PSG, despite a season that has among other debacles has seen fans protesting at Neymar’s house and Messi being suspended, ended any potential for last-day drama by pushing four points clear of Lens, who beat Ajaccio 3-0 to keep the pressure on.

However, Lens’ hopes of a shock Ligue 1 triumph ended Saturday as Messi made more history. With PSG and Strasbourg deadlocked in the 59th minute, Kylian Mbappรฉ feinted his way into an opening on the edge of the box, teeing up a sprinting Messi for an angled finish.

Messi’s 17th goal of the campaign allowed him to pass Ronaldo, who headed off to Saudi Arabia this winter with 495 goals scored in the Premier League, La Liga, and Serie A. Messi, meanwhile, has piled his goals up in La Liga with Barcelona and now at PSG in Ligue 1.

PSG has now won Ligue 1 in nine of the last 11 seasons, with only Monaco (2016-17) and Lille (2020-21) able to interrupt their total dominance in France.

The goal may also be a farewell for Messi, who has been strongly linked with a move away from Paris. MLS commissioner Don Garber has openly admitted the league would be willing to change its rules to get Messi to sign with Inter Miami, and Barcelona would love to bring him back. That said, all indicators are pointing towards him following Ronaldo to the Saudi Pro League, presumably to break his goal record there and/or make unfathomable amounts of money.

Watch Messi’s record-breaking goal for PSG

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Ronaldo becomes world’s highest-paid athlete after Saudi move. Will Messi follow him?

The Al Nassr star is back atop the list for the first time since 2017. But his stay may be short lived

Cristiano Ronaldo has become the world’s highest-paid athlete after his move to Saudi Arabian side Al Nassr, according to Forbes.

The publication released its list of the 10 highest-paid athletes for 2023, which was topped by Ronaldo for the first time since 2017. Lionel Messi came in second and Kylian Mbappรฉ was third.

The trio were the only soccer players on the list, and all draw their huge salaries from Middle Eastern countries. Messi and Mbappรฉ are teammates at Qatari-owned PSG.

Except, not for long! Widespread reports on Wednesday stated that Messi would be leaving PSG at the end of the season when his contract expires. The divorce has been in the works for a while, but was sped up when PSG suspended Messi on Tuesday for an unauthorized trip to โ€” you guessed it โ€” Saudi Arabia.

Messi’s next trip to Saudi Arabia could see him regain his spot atop the Forbes list in 2024. The Telegraph reported that Messi’s representatives are in talks with the Saudi government โ€” for which Messi is already a paid spokesperson โ€” over a deal to bring him to the Saudi Pro League that would be worth a total of $400 million per year.

That would dwarf Ronaldo’s total package of an estimated $136 million.

In a very related story, golfers Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson also appear on the Forbes list after leaving the PGA Tour for Saudi-backed LIV Golf.

Forbes Top 10 money list in 2023

1. Cristiano Ronaldo ($136 million)
2. Lionel Messi ($130m)
3. Kylian Mbappรฉ ($120m)
4. LeBron James ($119.5m)
5. Canelo รlvarez ($110m)
6. Dustin Johnson ($107m)
7. Phil Mickelson ($106m)
8. Stephen Curry ($100.4m)
9. Roger Federer ($95.1m)
10. Kevin Durant ($89.1m)

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Cristiano Ronaldo almost decapitated a man and only got a yellow card

The Al Nassr star went full WWE in Tuesday’s game

Cristiano Ronaldo is in Saudi Arabia to make lots and lots of money of course, but he also would like to win some silverware.

And as that possibility begins to slip away, the Portuguese forward is starting to look a little frustrated.

As the Saudi Pro League reaches the business end of its campaign, Ronaldo’s Al Nassr side suffered a damaging 2-0 loss to Al Hilal on Tuesday.

The loss drops Al Nassr to three points behind first-place Al Ittihad, which now has a game in hand. The frustration of dropping three vital points appeared to get the best of Ronaldo in one particular second-half incident, which appeared to come straight out of WWE.

Al Hilal defender Gustavo Cuรฉllar was shielding Ronaldo off the ball, and the Portugal star’s solution was to simply wrap both arms around Cuรฉllar’s neck and attempt to separate his head from his body.

Referee Michael Oliver (yes, that Michael Oliver) decided that Ronaldo’s transgression was only worth a yellow card โ€” a generous interpretation of the law, but one that wouldn’t help Al Nassr much on the night.

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Cristiano Ronaldo sheds tears as his likely final quest for a World Cup falls short

This looks like the end of Ronaldo’s World Cup quest.

What may be Cristiano Ronaldo‘s final quest for a World Cup has fallen short.

Morocco took down Portugal in a shocking 1-0 decision on Saturday, sending Ronaldo and his teammates home after yet another failed World Cup attempt.

This year’s World Cup in Qatar was the soccer phenom’s fifth attempt at winning a title with Portugal, having made his debut in 2006.

With him turning 38 in February, Ronaldo might have just played his last World Cup game. For a career that’s decorated in as many accolades as a professional athlete can garner, the World Cup will most likely be Ronaldo’s white whale that swims out to sea.

He was visibly emotional as he exited the pitch in what’s assumed to be his World Cup finale.

While this journey for Ronaldo will fall short, he’s got one of the most prolific careers in the sport to rest his laurels on. Even though the World Cup will remain out of grasp, his legacy is quite secured.

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World Cup fans rip Fox Sports over misleading tweet about Cristian Ronaldo after Portugal scored

This was bad, Fox Sports.

Portugal is taking on Switzerland this afternoon in a knockout stage match at the World Cup in Qatar and they’re doing it with their legend, Cristiano Ronaldo watching from the bench as he shockingly didn’t get the start.

Things are going well for Portugal, though, as they lead 2-0 at the half as of this writing.

You know who is not doing fine? Fox Sports, which has had a number of rough moments in this World Cup. and their coverage of this game and of Ronaldo.

Moments after Portugal’s first goal, the Fox Soccer Twitter account posted a short video of Ronaldo sitting on the bench. The way they worded it (and with the use of the eyes emoji) made it seem like Ronaldo didn’t have any reaction to the goal and didn’t care about his teammates.

Here’s a screenshot of the tweet, because Fox Soccer deleted minutes later after just about everyone on Twitter ripped them for posting it:

The video lasted three seconds and it was clear that the goal had happened well before that because even his teammate in the background wasn’t reacting to anything, either.

Also, here are photos of Ronaldo celebrating with his teammates after the first goal:

(Photo by JEWEL SAMAD/AFP via Getty Images)
(Photo by JEWEL SAMAD/AFP via Getty Images)

And here he is celebrating the second goal:

(Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP)
(Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP)

Fans were not impressed:

Why Portugal benched Cristiano Ronaldo in a crucial World Cup knockout match

A HUGE decision for Portugal.

Ever since Cristiano Ronaldo made his World Cup debut in 2006 as a 21-year-old star from Manchester United, he had been the undisputed face of the Portugal national team. They’d go as far as Ronaldo could take them.

Well, fast forward to 2022, and that’s not necessarily the case for the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.

With Portugal seeking a trip to the quarterfinal, head coach Fernando Santos made the hugely consequential decision to name a Starting XI for the Round of 16 match against Switzerland without Ronaldo a part of it.

While Santos’ call to move Ronaldo to the bench will be surprising to plenty of fans, it was a justifiable decision.

Let’s break down why.

Cristiano Ronaldoโ€™s ‘haircut goal’ forced sportsbooks to correct their payouts and bettors were furious

“The hair of God” no-goal.

In his prolific, all-time career, Portugal talisman striker Cristiano Ronaldo has usually made it a point to eventually score for his home nation. In 193 international appearances for Portugal, Ronaldo has netted 118 goals — the most of any Men’s player ever. He’s usually as sure of a bet to not only find a way to get a goal but also pepper a goalie with several shots.

That was not the case during Portugal’s 2-0 win over Uruguay in Group H on Monday.

Not only did Ronaldo not get a shot on target during the matchup, he also just barely missed a golden opportunity to score (which would’ve poached a goal from his own teammate Bruno Fernandes).

Look closely, and yes, Ronaldo indeed did not make any contact with the ball. After being initially credited with the score, it was appropriately awarded to Fernandes.

Of course, Ronaldo’s miss/subsequent rescore didn’t end up hurting Portugal, given the eventual win. Plus, he still has the all-time international scoring mark.

It was, however, a disastrous result for bettors.ย Some sportsbooks naturally had to correct payouts after it was revealed Ronaldo didn’t actually score.

Others were a little more forgiving of the unfortunate circumstance:

In all fairness, could you blame anyone for expecting a guy who essentially scores at least one goal every two international games to score a goal in an international game? If not for a slight miss on precision, Ronaldo would’ve had another one here, and sportsbooks wouldn’t be issuing corrections on payouts to bettors.