The Manchester United superstar could try to force his way out of Old Trafford at the end of the season, with Saudi Arabia as an option.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s time at Manchester United may be coming to an end as the 37-year-old begins to consider Saudi Arabian clubs as a serious option.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner expressed his desire to leave the club in the summer, but he was not inundated with offers from the European powerhouses he expected. During the most recent transfer window, major clubs such as Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain, and Atletico Madrid all turned down the opportunity to sign Ronaldo.
Ronaldo, desperate to play Champions League football, turned down an offer from an unnamed Saudi club that would have paid him a staggering £2 million per week. Another proposal would have meant he’d pocket £211m per year.
However, as Ten Hag seemingly favors the idea of Marcus Rashford playing through the middle, Ronaldo’s willingness to stick around until the end of the season is thought to be decreasing. In turn, the former Real Madrid man is coming to terms with the idea that his love affair with European club football’s most prestigious competition is nearing its end.
United aren’t currently a Champions League club and lost the first game of their Europa League group stage campaign 1-0 to Real Sociedad at Old Trafford. Throw in the fact that Ronaldo still can’t get into that team and it becomes clear why his patience is wearing thin.
It also explains why the Saudi option is becoming a more attractive proposition to the aging forward. If the chances of ever playing in the Champions League again are remote, his camp is starting to feel like he may as well go and earn those aforementioned eye-watering wages.
Yasser Al-Misehal, president of the Saudi Arabian Football Federation, spoke with The Athletic over the idea of a player of Ronaldo’s caliber plying his trade in the country, suggesting the offer still stands despite snubbing it in the summer.
“We would love to see a player like Cristiano Ronaldo playing in the Saudi league, it would bring huge positive feedback and it would be big news for everyone. I’m sure everyone knows the achievements and records of Cristiano Ronaldo, but also as a player who is a great role model.
“I think, ‘Why not?’, I’m sure it would be a very expensive deal, of course, but we can see our clubs getting higher revenues in the past couple of years. We have already seen some big players who used to play in the Premier League come to the Saudi league.
“I like Cristiano Ronaldo as a player and I would like to see him play in Saudi Arabia.” Al-Misehal went on to concede he couldn’t possibly speculate on which Saudi club could be the one to pry the icon away from Old Trafford.
With his reduced game time so far this season, Ronaldo is unlikely to have backtracked on his stance that he wants out and Ten Hag’s reluctance to actually play him means there’s a strong chance United don’t stand in his way this time when the January window opens.
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