Cristiano Ronaldo is set to sign a mammoth seven-year deal with Saudi Arabia side Al Nassr in the coming days, according to reports in Spain.
The Portuguese striker was made a free agent a week before the World Cup began in Qatar, agreeing a contract termination by ‘mutual consent’ with Manchester United.
It followed weeks of being a bit-part player under Erik ten Hag, culminating in a public interview in which he astonishingly claimed that he had no respect for Manchester United’s new boss and that most of his teammates were not good enough to play for the Red Devils.
The 37-year-old also claimed that he rejected offers from around Europe for his services over the summer, and it was expected that those offers would once again return with him being available for free.
Despite his best efforts, however, they have not, with Eintracht Frankfurt the latest club to publicly reject a move for the veteran striker and six-time Ballon D’or winner.
Now, as per Spanish outlet Marca, the former Real Madrid striker is set to sign a lucrative deal with Saudi Arabia side Al Nassr, who are thought to be offering him a mammoth £62million-a-year to play in the Arab state.
Just two and a half years of that will be as a player, while the remainder will come as ‘ambassador of the candidacy of the Arab country together with Egypt and Greece for the organization of the 2030 World Cup.’
“The striker’s arrival in Ryad is expected at any time”, they add, marking the end of his European career and Champions League story.
Having seen the success of Lionel Messi’s links with Qatar with regards to the World Cup, it appears as though Saudi Arabia are attempting to follow in the footsteps of their neighbours as they aim to bring the international showpiece back to the middle east in 2030.
