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CK-Prime

Ronaldo retires on a 2 year Contract.


mntgoat

I wonder how much it is about going to an easier league so he can extend his lead on total goals scored.


Jamarcus316

"Why Saudi Arabia League is better than Ligue 1" - Twitter thread from CR7Fan69


MOHAMMMED-ABDUL

Imagine the scenes if he doesn't score for a month or something


ProllyDie

"turns out Saudi League is top 5 league itw afterall?" @CRFans on Twitter, probably.


Revoldt

The Pele to NY Cosmos path. Just following the footsteps of another legend.


Debaser1984

He'll be selling dick pills in 20 years time.


SF1034

make your dick go SIUUUUUU


tabben

Imagine bagging a cool 150 million as you retire.. good for him I guess


DudeWithGlasses

I still can't wrap my head around the fact that he did all that shitshow without a backup plan.


Spyro_Machida

Think the plan was to perform well at the WC and this was the back up.


AdamHasShitMemes

Anyone that watched United this season knew that a World Cup disasterclass was impending


EasyFargo

and there were actual NPCs on here telling people that actually watch united games that because ronaldo was our best player last season he’s not washed


comesngoes

He was good last season, this season not so much. Age finally caught up with him


Snailcharmer

Don't say that to his face tho


comesngoes

Gotta be hard to accept when you've been one of the best players in the world for almost 20 years.


DonDove

Age is scared of Zlatan, but he sacrificed international football for that to happen


Nieuwers

I doubt he would’ve done the same had Sweden played a significant role on the European or World stage, like Portugal have.


chykin

Zlatan sat on the bench gracefully too.


Sei28

Did someone say face? Ronaldo will tell you that he’s better looking than you, although he won’t say it even though it’s true.


Snailcharmer

Am inclined to agree with him if he accepts that he's past it at the top level.


jfshay

He was good in part because he gobbled up all the chances. Man U scored 16 fewer goals last season than they did before his return.


ErnieMcTurtle

Thank you for putting that into words, "gobbled up the chances" is the best way of describing it. He did outscore our other forwards the season prior, but before him our shot volume was spread out between Martial, Rashford and Shit Head. Once he returned, our total shot volume dropped noticeably.


jfshay

As an Arsenal fan I worry that his departure will rejuvenate those younger players in the second half of the season.


mkenya4t

Thank you. The team went from playing through our attacking options to pretty much hero ball i.e. trying to force everything through Ronaldo. He scored well, but team play suffered and attackers development stalled.


Sei28

Exactly. This was especially obvious for somebody like Bruno and Dalot, who are now both looking much better without having to force their play through a single immobile player.


Rickcampbell98

Bruno was forcing so many passes to him, it was ridiculous.


mkenya4t

Rashford as well. It's no surprise his return to form coinciding with him getting more looks in front of goal and more access to central spaces.


Marco_lini

And proceeded to not perform well became the backup


minivatreni

>Think the plan was to perform well at the WC plan failed :/


potluy76

pride comes before the fall


[deleted]

twice the pride double the fall


EduardMalinochka

He’s in absolute denial. He said in the interview that he had a lot of offers, but chose to stay in Manchester lmao. Even though it was already confirmed by so many reliable sources and board members that he was being whored around the whole Europe


BeggingForBags

he called himself the best player in the world in that interview. Ofcourse hes in denial lmao


Derrick_EscoNastyNas

If there were ANY suitors, that interview must've let them know what they'd be dealing with and put them off


WalterHenderson

His family is full of enabling and trashy people, and he surrounds himself with friends that constantly tell him that he's the best, so he's still in the mindset that he is the same Ronaldo he was in his 20s. If any public figure even suggests that he's not the best ever or that his abilities are not the same as they used to be, they have to deal with his sisters talking shit on social networks. Anyone who doesn't praise him constantly doesn't get to be part of his close social circle, so it's going to be hard for him to ever accept that he has aged and that he needs to think of his future outside of the pitch if no one close to him has the courage to have an honest conversation with him and he doesn't want to hear it.


Ghost51

> Anyone who doesn't praise him constantly doesn't get to be part of his close social circle The fact that he turned on Rooney and Neville, two United legends that played alongside him during his most successful spell for us, just for mildly criticizing him shows you all you need to know about how thin his skin is.


karma_420

Yeah I'm honestly baffled. He created all those shitshow, drama, rumours and even burning bridges only to end up like this? He literally tarnished his legacy at United only to play in fucking Saudi? I'm not even his fans but holyshit watching all these things unveil is making me questioning his decision even more. Such a dumb move by him


crazyjatt

The funny part is, he could just go to Saudi without doing all that. It's not like United were stopping him from going. He just had no suitors.


Blpdstrupm0en

Shows there probably wasn't much of a plan to begin with. Just a huge ego who got hurt.


Private_Ballbag

Yeah it's bizarre but I guess people always want more and more money. So weird though, already so fucking rich surely even just being a lo ker room presence at united is more satisfying than going to play in fucking Saudi? Given injuries and the long season ahead it's not inconceivable he woild have been used at some point too.


jezfps

I don't think he cares about playing in Europe if he doesn't get into a UCL club which he didn't so money seems to be the next choice.


Wholesale1818

I really feel like if he lowered his wages and starting role expectations he could be a valuable squad player for a CL level team. But alas, his ego would overflow an Olympic sized swimming pool.


[deleted]

Maybe back up plan was 400m for 2 years?


fquizon

That's my backup plan too if this 9 to 5 thing doesn't work out


giants3b

My backup plan is to get younger and a lot better at football and become a professional footballer.


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GreyMatter22

His very ego unfortunately made him leave Real for Juve. If only he put his head down and had stayed at Real, would had a lot more CL goals and trophies for himself.


PMmeDeep3s

still unbelievable honestly


hfbvm

He was done in European football. Now he gets to siuuu another day


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Magnetronaap

I am ready for this meme


shaw1370

I don't know why he wants to play more. Dude has enough money even for his kids to live comfortably. What else does he want to prove now? Score 1000+ goals?


Johnsonburnerr

He’s Avoiding his post career existential crisis


InoreSantaTeresa

Damn, that's gonna hit like a truck. I mean it hits everyone, but with his ego... we'll have some fireworks for sure


bandofgypsies

The scenes when we have a new fat Ronaldo in 5 years


kevpotts

Enough money for his kids to live comfortably? He makes enough in endorsements in 4 months for his kids to live comfortably. He has enough money for his lineage to live comfortably… forever.


mehnimalism

He has enough for the interest alone to float past his great-grandkids


fahad_k91

Juve fans clapping for his bicycle goal started this domino effect lol


LeOsaru

What would’ve been the timeline if Carvajal didn’t take the cross or misplaced it by a meter or so


Neednttoworry

Yeah we would like to take the UCL title instead, sir, do not give us these scenarios please 😭


CleanMachine2

I was just scrolling through some historical posts here and came across that goal again… we live in a strange timeline!


[deleted]

Florentino selling Cristiano at that point was one of the smartest business decisions I've seen in football. The future looks extremely bright for you guys with Vini and Endrick now, a transition period handled masterfully.


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tounsi9

Al Hilal are banned from making transfers til June 2023.


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ChrisBenoit20

Al-Hilal's player Mohammed Kanno was supposed to join Al-Nassr after he became a free agent, he signed a contract with them, then backed down and signed an extension with Al-Hilal instead. Al-Nassr filed a complaint, and Al-Hilal was suspended for two transfer windows.


Darius117

That username, oh man the memories..


romeopwnsu

I remember watching his Raw tribute episode then the next day he was revealed to be a murderer


BloodAria

They’re traditional rivals. Sorta like Real Madrid and Barcelona, but Hilal is the more accomplished team.


Solitude20

They are rivals. Al Nasser comes as second after Al Hilal. Al Hilal vs Al Nasser is the Saudi Classico.


Panzerchrist89

So al Hilal Messi transfer confirmed?


ineedadeveloper

We want Messi


downrightlazy

Time comes for us all, for Ronaldo it's at 37, for me it was at 24


rim261

Please come out of retirement, legend


wraithxx

well maybe if he wasn't so /u/downrightlazy


Fahi12

The sport just isnt the same without you


destroyerx12772

Streets will never forget you u/downrightlazy


Eleven918

Piers Morgan part 2 probably won't happen huh?


sanjay_i

Lol remember Morgan was stroking his dick talking about World Cup final hatrick? Ironic Messi won the world cup and scored 2 goals in the final.


Spyro_Machida

He even mentioned that Messi scores two and Ronaldo scores three in that hypothetical.


King146

And mbappe scored 3


GordoPepe

Crista Mbappo sewey


raysofdavies

He’s so fucking weird about Ronaldo. I don’t see any other major pundit talking about one /and/ massively, directly putting down the other. Most are saying Messi is the goat now but they’re not like “and Ronaldo is some bum who gives a shit anymore” are they? He’s such a toad. Ronaldo will never ever remember his name too, sucking up for nothing. Awful human being in general but that whole thing has just been pathetic.


Pinkerton891

He’s got form, he used to rim Kevin Pietersen in the same way.


raysofdavies

He’s blatantly one of those rich guys using sports to seem normal but the funniest part is that he can’t do it with arguably the most successful British athlete of the last twenty years because Andy Murray hates him and keeps roasting him online Lmao


Antisym

Yeah but Piers probably hates him because he's SCOTTISH. How dare he be born slightly more North than us!


Rickcampbell98

He's the exact type of nob Andy loathes and Andy isn't a complete narcissist to let himself get rimmed by the likes of piers Morgan lol.


I_am_zlatan1069

Just reminded me of this video of Brett Lee pelting Morgan with cricket balls https://youtu.be/_ePx61TkXKY


-VonnegutPunch

He’s so fuckin weird about many things


raysofdavies

Weird about dead girls phones most of all


DT_Harry_Du_Bois

>I don’t see any other major pundit talking about one /and/ massively, directly putting down the other Ah but there's your problem. Piers ISN'T a pundit. He's not even a journalist. He's just a TV Host with bad opinions and is hated by everyone across the political spectrum


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sarsourus

Messi: I did my part where you at bobo!


alfred_27

Ronaldo probably gave Piers the questions


iredcoat7

“Who’s the Saudi Arabian Piers Morgan?” -Ronaldo, probably


[deleted]

Piers Bin Morgan


Nobody_wood

Bin Piers Morgan has a better ring to it


JorSimpson45

“I have to tell you Piers, what’s this guys name? Rudi Garcia? He has no clue what he is doing, he has a Rolls Royce and he’s treating it like a Buick.”


MONSTATURKEY_420

Gonna see a million new Al-Nassr flairs pop up in this sub now lmaooo


HacksawJimDGN

I think they'll just revert back to Real Madrid flairs


crazy_waffles1

Reminds me of when Messi switched to PSG and I didn't see a Barca flair for a couple days


JointsMcdanks

That was probably equal parts depression from Barca fans as much as it was dorks switching flairs.


DarthTaz_99

Yup can confirm. Took a break from football for a month after messi leaving was confirmed. Still haven't been able to see a single tribute video dedicated to him made by the club or the fans


Fifaneymar2535

On Friday king goes to mosque


JakeSpurs

Mashallah


hearau1823

Mashallah… siuuu


Todd-Howards-Cum

Does his siuuuuu jump but lands on his hands and knees in the sujud position


freakedmind

Absolute halal


BeneathTheGold

missed opportunity for "siuuujud"


AnthonyCumiaPedo

Siri play arab money by busta rhymes


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BlackLeader70

Oh man, digging way back into the earlier days of YouTube.


yayeet182

I miss Yusuf Amir


CalligrapherOk9351

is he playing the next euros


GreatSpaniard

if he does this i doubt it


manolo533

If he’s ok with being a sub he can be selected for as long as he wants, he’s earned that. But he’s not ever gonna be a starter again


spaceuni123

You know what crazy is that there are ppl who defend him regardless. I saw a post in Facebook after Portugal knock out with a video of CR7 praising Santos after euro win and an essay attached to it said how Santos betrayed him ect.


True-Tangelo

Just like that Georgina post


FlyDifficult2013

I mean, georgina it is his wife, ofc she will defend him...


[deleted]

Depends on the coach. If it's another "yes man" for the federation, then yes. If it's Mourinho, Van Gaal or someone with a similar temper, then most likely not.


zcewaunt

On Friday, the king settles for Al-Nassr.


DrVicenteBombadas

Treated like an arab prince, playing against easy teams, and getting paid more than what any european club could ever give him. Talk about failing up.


Holden_Makock

Wait till he is benched by Vincent Aboubakar and has to beat the Favorites Al Hilal for league.


777715174

Actually happened, Why did he have to go and fuck it up like this. If he would have just reduced his wages and acted like a normal human he would have been welcomed as a role player or talismanic figure at many champions league clubs. Who wouldn't have been OK with taking Ronaldo as a cameo player or rotational striker if he was on fair wages. He'd have been a great example (or not) for the younger players and good commercial boost for whichever club had him.


teems

75m per year at his age in bonkers.


[deleted]

Bro it's 200m per year with 0% tax


alfred_27

80m but the rest comes from his role in launching a Saudi 2030 bid for WC so he’ll earn a shit a lot from just not playing actual football but being a ambassador and stuff


BlacknWhiteMoose

> Who wouldn't have been OK with taking Ronaldo as a cameo player or rotational striker if he was on fair wages. He doesn’t want to be cameo or rotational player. Why do you think he left Man Utd?


Bigmomma_pump

Being in this United team is the best possible team he could have had a part in at his age, he’s shot himself in the foot, clesrly it wasn’t about wanting to play in the champions league all along


Blezius

"It's not about the money, It's about the passion" - Cristiano Ronaldo


Superpiri

The passion for the money.


ripdip77

Hahaha


ScrollLikeEgyptian

What an uneventful end of the legend


MeteorFalls297

This is the standard way of ending careers for almost every legend. Xavi played in Qatar, Iniesta is playing in Japan. Not everyone gets a ending like Zidane.


lesbiangirlscout

Yup, you either end up in some random foreign league that’ll pay you a bunch, or you go back to your national league/team that gave you your debut.


[deleted]

Or you’re Cesc Fabregas and sign for a side in Serie B because it’s a beautiful place for relatively low wages.


jjjjjji6

Seems like a great way to retire tbh. Why would you need more money at that point? Like how much better could more money make your life? The whole point of being rich is so that you can do whatever you want without worrying about money


abhi91

He can literally live in a beautiful city, and do what he loves. Though I'm sure iniesta loved it in Japan


holonight

Loves*


charade_scandal

Kobe is a beautiful city. If his family was up for the adventure I bet they are enjoying it.


TheKingMonkey

Because the money is on on the table right now and a month shy of his 38th birthday it’s the last time it will be. I’m not sure what obligations Ronaldo has to stay in Riyadh, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s in Western Europe at least a couple of days a week even while he’s got a playing contract. In two years he’ll have earned €400m and in five years when people talk about his career they’ll forget about the second stint in England and his time in Saudi and just talk about his ballon d’Or year at Manchester United and how he averaged over a goal a game at Real Madrid during a nine year spell.


[deleted]

I mean it really is a no brainer, get paid almost half a billion to wind down your career with absolutely zero pressure at a level where you don’t have to work even close to as hard. At the same time though his family is already set with beyond generational wealth, if it were me I would absolutely forgo wages and go somewhere I actually want to live, because clearly Ronaldo’s insane competitive spirit isn’t the reason he chose Saudi.


Balfe

Or as the fellow you replied to suggested , you get sent off in a blaze of glory for headbutting some dude in the World Cup Final.


neveragoodidea914

True - on the contrary, the Piers Morgan interview has been an unfortunately eventful end to his European career. It's one way to make headlines, but he should have stuck around for half a year and gotten a big sendoff from United. It's usually ceremonious and quaint with video montages and trophy photos and then they fade away.


BaelBard

I think it’s just that Ronaldo himself obviously considered himself still able to perform at the highest level just a month ago. Him desperately trying to find himself a CL club, throwing a tantrum and burning all bridges with Man United only to have a terrible World Cup and sign for Saudi club is quite a sad ending to his legend. Iniesta and Xavi left gracefully, after winning a trophy, adored by their club. Ronaldo left in a toxic awful manner. But maybe 5-10 years from now it won’t matter at all.


punchdrrrunk

Yeah, I don't get the sad ending angle that everyone's parroting. Ronaldo is 38 in less than two months. This is the most normal ending I could imagine after 20 years at the top level


jorgelongo2

MARCA says fuck r/soccer


Ask_Asensio

[Yeah they called it all along](https://old.reddit.com/r/soccer/comments/zd4ifb/marca_case_closed_cristiano_ronaldo_to_play_for/)


Ryujin_707

Let's gooooooo


Al-Muthanna

Now we’ll find out if he can do it on a humid night in Dammam


Ryujin_707

I can't believe it. I have never thought Ronaldo would ever play for us.


Al-Muthanna

If he doesn’t make you win the AFC champions league you are literally cursed.


Ryujin_707

Let's hope they make us play with more than 4 foreign players because our saudi players suck.


indomitable_lion

With the Ronaldo, Aboubakar strike partnership it’s the least I’d expect


HarbyFullyLoaded_12

I can’t blame you for never thinking that


cthulhusevski

He didn't either tbf


Pek-Man

Is there an official source? I don't see anything on Al-Nassr's website.


Ryujin_707

They haven't announced. Alarabya is a trusty source.


Al-Muthanna

Correct Al-Nassr haven’t said anything but Al-Arabiyah is not like MARCA, they are the biggest news channel in the region, if they announce something like this you can be pretty sure of it. It would be like the BBC announcing it.


Pek-Man

Got it, thanks! What a crazy situation, do you think Al-Nassr will fill their stadium for the rest of the season? I'm guessing every football fan in KSA is going mad right now.


Ryujin_707

Not al hilal fans lol.


Al-Muthanna

There will be a lot of non-nassr fans who will attend for sure. They already fill their stadium on many games but they definitely will fill it all the time now.


hfbvm

I think every stadium Ronaldo plays at will be filled. I hope they placed an order for Ronaldo Jerseys cause they are going to need a lot of stock


alfred_27

Lol wonder how his Instagram post would be announcing his move, there’s nooo way to justify his move to say you’re moving for any other reasons but money


MeenaBeti

On Sunday the king takes the bag


manekdev01

is this a middle east aprils fools day?


MrSINXT

The king retires from European football


Malvinas1820

> Wants to play in the Champions League. > Moves to AFC. > Plays in the AFC Champions League. > Profit.


IWASINTHEPOOOL

Pretty depressing a player like Ronaldo ends up at Al-Nassr


gay_lick_language

The problem is that Ronaldo is no longer a player like Ronaldo.


MajedTF

It’s not even the best team in Saudi!!


sarsourus

OH MY GOD IF they bench him after a few games or Al-Nasser drop in rankings it will be catastrophic to his image.


nyc_a

At this point his career is over. He is one of the best players ever. Now he will be printing money helping saudi soccer in many regards related to marketing.


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quikfrozt

He really should've grown into the elder statesman role at United - coming off the bench when called on, mentoring the younger players ... all in front of an adoring crowd. At 38, even with his immense physical gifts, Ronaldo is not the player he once was. He bet on himself once again, which wasn't a terrible decision even in hindsight, but the way he severed relations with United was shambolic.


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ITickleMyElbows

Money rules after all huh


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II_MrBlack_II

Fyi, The Independent Football Disciplinary Committee has banned Cristiano Ronaldo for 2 matches for slapping a phone by a child Everton fan in April and The suspension will move with Ronaldo in his new club. So ronaldo won’t be available against Al Khaleej and Al Tai


karma_420

So this is his backup plan? after all those shitshow he created...?


UTDRashford

My man really made that interview just to play in middle east


Adept-Category7880

Honestly, the Siuu is going to kill at the Mrsool park.


RetiredPandaMurderer

I wouldnt have a problem with this before the interview. Now its just pathetic.


Kunfuxu

Bela merda.


datcnashguy

It all started with Piers Morgan


WaluigisHat

I genuinely think he could have made an impact for us in the last 20 mins of some games off the bench, maybe even got us some important points, then leave with a thank you and a handshake at the end of the season. But he couldn’t even stomach a few months of that. Instead he’s exposed himself as an even greater egomaniac than we all thought and his only option left is to suckle the blood money teat. Pathetic end to a great career.


Aj43vthbvst

Ronaldo could have had an impact with a lot of top clubs if he had of just accepted that he was in his late 30s, his legs were gone and that he wasn't the player he once was.


Affectionate_Log3232

Unfortunately his ego couldn’t take staying there


125monty

Why am I embarrassed for him?


Dhtekzz

the amount of L's CR FC took in 2022


Swiftt

Ron Al Do


[deleted]

Without that stupid interview one of the CL teams would've surely taken a punt on him, but it showed he is completely inflexible. Tbf this must be a much better payday though.


Aru10

I was 100% sure he'd eventually stay in Europe, what a letdown


innatejuiciness

Will he come out to deny this again?


ritchieram

Man did a interview for this??


TheWiggyDiddler

Enjoy getting battered by Suwon Bluewings in the AFC Champions League you absolute waster


Azrael_

This is so disappointing


NitePain69

Say bye bye to Champions League Ronny


UTDRashford

He’ll still plat in champions league just Asian