 "Revealed: Why Al-Nassr's rivals Al-Hilal failed to sign Cristiano Ronaldo")
synopsis
Cristiano Ronaldo signed with Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr last month, sparking massive excitement among fans. However, do you know how the club managed to secure the services of the Portuguese talisman over rivals Al-Hilal? Read on:
Legendary striker Cristiano Ronaldo's move to Al-Nassr, has been one of football's most discussed transfers. The Portuguese talisman, who signed a contract of 175 million pounds annually until 2025, made an unceremonious departure from Manchester United in November last year in the wake of his explosive interview with Piers Morgan.
During the interview, Ronaldo slammed United, manager Erik ten Hag and the lack of evolution since Sir Alex Ferguson left the club. The 37-year-old striker also revealed that he turned down a 350 million euro offer from Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal during the summer transfer window, shocking fans.
On turning down the 350 million euro offer, Ronaldo told Morgan, "It's hard, it's hard. But in the same way, I thought that I was very happy here; that I am still capable of scoring goals. I still believe that I can score many, many goals and help the team because I still believe that I'm still good and capable of helping national team – even Manchester United."
Months later, Ronaldo signed with rivals Al-Nassr, leaving fans to wonder why he did not choose to revisit the Al-Hilal offer instead.
The reason: A transfer ban!
According to the Athletic, Al-Hilal is currently serving a transfer embargo which ended their pursuit of the five-time Ballon d'Or winner in the summer of 2022. The transfer ban on Al-Hilal is because Mohamed Kanno extended his contract at the club despite already having an agreement with Al-Nassr.
Regardless of their prior interest in Ronaldo's services, Al Hilal would have appeared to be the obvious choice for any elite European player moving to the Saudi Pro League.
With eight titles won, including four AFC Champions Leagues, two Asian Cup Winners Cups, and two Asian Super Cup victories, the club also holds the most Asian Football Confederation trophies.
Al Hilal appears to have made their own mistake in allowing their opponents to create the most significant signing in Asian football history, though.
After Kanno's contract uncertainty, the SPL winners attempted to appeal the transfer ban, but after an unsuccessful verdict in August, they were forced to withdraw from the competition to sign Ronaldo.
The Portuguese legend's arrival at Al-Nassr has already seen the Saudi Arabian club's profile grow to previously unexpected levels, and the striker, who was approached by their rivals, could now be the one to deny Al Hilal a fourth consecutive title.
Rudi Garcia, Al-Nassr's manager, asserts that Ronaldo will have a similar impact on Saudi Arabian football as the legendary Brazilian player Pele did in the United States after joining the New York Cosmos.
Additionally, when Ronaldo joined the team, the Saud Pro League side's Instagram following increased ninefold, underscoring the influence the forward has now had on the league. But fans of Al-Nassr have to wait for the former Manchester United icon's debut as he serves his pending 2-match FA ban for the infamous incident at Everton last season.
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