Ronaldo joins Al Nassr: here’s what you need to know about the club

Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo has joined Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr on a two-and-a-half year contract, a month after the 37-year-old forward became a free agent when his contract with Premier League club Manchester United was terminated.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner left Man United following an explosive television interview in which he said he felt betrayed by the club and did not respect their Dutch manager Erik ten Hag. 

Ronaldo represented Portugal in Qatar, where he became the first player to score in five World Cups after netting a penalty in his side's opening Group H game against Ghana. Portugal were knocked out in the quarterfinals by Morocco.

Ronaldo said Qatar would probably be his last World Cup as he plans to retire at 40, with a move to Saudi Arabia likely to mark the swansong in the career of one of the game’s greatest current players alongside Lionel Messi. 

He will join Al Nassr in a deal until June 2025 but financial details were not disclosed.

Here is what you need to know about the club:

Al Nassr’s history

• Formed in 1955, Al Nassr is based in the Saudi capital of Riyadh and the club plays in the country’s top division — the Saudi Professional League (SPL), which has 18 teams.

• It finished third last season, six points behind champions Al Hilal.

• Al Nassr are the second-most successful team in the league with nine titles. Their last win was in the 2018-19 season. Only Al Hilal, also based in Riyadh, have won more titles (18).

• They have also won the country’s knockout cup, the King’s Cup, six times, most recently in 1990.

• The league’s all-time top scorer Majed Abdullah played for Al Nassr. The former Saudi striker scored 189 goals and averaged nearly a goal a game.

• Al Nassr’s home ground is Mrsool Park, which has a capacity of 25,000.

• Al Nassr’s best performance in Asia’s premier club competition, the AFC Champions League, came in 1995 when they finished runners-up.

Who’s the coach?

• Al Nassr are coached by Rudi Garcia, who previously managed Lille, AS Roma, Olympique Marseille and Olympique Lyonnais. The Frenchman has been in charge since June.

• SPL clubs can register eight foreign players but only seven can be named in a match day squad.

• Other notable foreign players in the squad include Cameroon’s World Cup hero Vincent Aboubakar — who changed the game against Serbia and scored the winner to stun Brazil in their last group game in Qatar.

• Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina, who previously played for Arsenal and Napoli, as well as former Brazil international and midfielder Luiz Gustavo are also in the squad.

How are they doing? 

• Al Nassr are second in the league this season after 10 rounds, two points behind leaders Al Shabab.

• They must win the league this season to qualify for the 2023/2024 AFC Champions League.

What does Ronaldo bring?

• Ronaldo has scored over 700 goals in club football and over 100 in international football to sit top of the all-time scoring charts with 819 strikes.

• Despite United’s struggles last season, an ageing Ronaldo showed he still had some gas left in the tank when he finished top scorer with 24 goals, including 18 in the Premier League.

• But he struggled this season at United, scoring only three times in all competitions before his exit.

• In Qatar, he became the first player to score in five World Cups but he soon lost his place in the starting line-up after Portugal reached the knockout stages.

• Scoring goals has not been a problem for Al Nassr this season, however, with the team netting a joint league-high 24 goals after 10 games — the same as leaders Al Shabab.

Reuters