Cristiano Ronaldo has a new soccer team. The Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr announced on Friday they have signed the soccer superstar. According to ESPN, Ronaldo signed a contract through the summer of 2020 and is expected to receive $75 million per year. This comes after Ronaldo controversially left Manchester United.
“I am excited to experience a new football league in a different country,” Ronaldo said in Al-Nassr’s statement announcing the deal. “The vision of what Al Nassr are doing and developing in Saudi Arabia both in terms of men’s and women’s football is very inspiring. We can see from Saudi Arabia’s recent performance at the World Cup that this is a country with big football ambitions and a lot of potential.”
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Ronaldo continued: “I am fortunate that I have won everything I set out to win in European football and feel now that this is the right moment to share my experience in Asia. I am looking forward to joining my new teammates and together with them help the Club to achieve success.”
Ronaldo leaves Manchester United after an explosive interview with Talk TV in November. He said the club was “betraying ” him and he had “no respect” for head coach Erik ten Hag. “Cristiano Ronaldo is to leave Manchester United by mutual agreement, with immediate effect,” Manchester United said in a statement. “The club thanks him for his immense contribution across two spells at Old Trafford, scoring 145 goals in 346 appearances and wishes him and his family well for the future. Everyone at Manchester United remains focused on continuing the team’s progress under Erik ten Hag and working together to deliver success on the pitch.”
Ronaldo, a five-time winner of the Ballon d’Or, joins a team that plays in the Saudi Pro League and has the second-most top-flight league titles in the country’s history. He’s coming off a World Cup performance where he led Portugal to the quarterfinals. In his two seasons with Manchester United, Ronaldo appeared in 40 matches and scored 19 goals.
“This is more than history in the making,” Al-Nassr president Musalli Almuammar said. “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. He is a special footballer and a special person whose impact is felt far beyond football. Cristiano is joining a club with big ambitions, a competitive club amongst the very best in Asia and will be welcomed to a country that is making massive progress on and off the pitch with opportunities for all.”
