The Qatar 2022 World Cup was supposed to be a vindication of Cristiano Ronaldo, instead it has been more of the same as the Portuguese superstar has been benched by his national team. It all began when the 37-year-old had a poor reaction to being substituted against South Korea and his coach Fernando Santos had none of it.
Not only was he benched for the round of 16 match against Switzerland, but Portugal hardly missed him, destroying Switzerland 6-1 and sending a major statement during the knockout stage. Cristiano Ronaldo only played 15 minutes of the contest.
On top of that his reported move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr seems to have blown up in smoke. Here is the latest on Cristiano Ronaldo’s transfer rumors.
Cristiano Ronaldo to Al-Nassr now off?
According to reporter Pedro Sepúlveda, Ronaldo was not convinced by the proposition of the Saudi club, “Cristiano Ronaldo will reject the 200m€ offer from Al NassrFC. He's not looking for money. Ronaldo wants the ideal project to continue playing at the highest level. His priority continues to be a club with conditions to fight for Champions League. Playing in Asia is not an option.”
Pundits have reported that given Ronaldo’s high salary demands and the recent issues he has had it is very difficult for him to play for one of the major powers in Europe. Although the new ownership at Chelsea has expressed interest, more from a marketing standpoint than a soccer one.
If Ronaldo’s decision is to continue to play in Europe, then the rumors of a possible move to Major League Soccer are all but over. The question now is club less and on the bench for Portugal for more insubordination, what top club would take him?
