During the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Manchester United announced that Cristiano Ronaldo was no longer part of the team. The striker tried to stay in Europe, but Al-Nassr, Saudi Arabian team, offered him a lucrative deal he couldn’t reject and de forward decided to join their cause this year.

Ronaldo’s impact has been significant, as the Saudi Pro League has garnered considerable attention from his fans. As a result, the entire league has been making efforts to persuade elite players to join them, offering juicy contracts that are unmatched elsewhere.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, and the stars of the Saudi Pro League

It appears that the Saudi Pro League is relentless in its pursuit of the best available stars in the market. Cristiano Ronaldo joined the competition earlier this year, and his impact has been so significant that all teams aspire to emulate Al-Nassr’s move.

According to reports, Al-Hilal was interested in signing another huge star this summer. Lionel Messi was their main target, but the Argentinian forward rejected their offer and decided to continue his career in the MLS to play for Inter Miami.

However, other stars have already accepted lucrative contracts coming from Saudi Arabia. Karim Benzema left Real Madrid to sign a 3-year, $643 million deal with Al-Ittihad, in a blockbuster move for the reigning champions.

The French striker is not the only signing made by Al-Ittihad this summer. In addition to Benzema, N’Golo Kante, former Chelsea player, has also joined the team. The midfielder signed a 2-year deal worth approximately $100 million per season.

According to rumors, other players such as Ruben Neves, Edouard Mendy, Hakim Ziyech, among others, are rumored to be close to joining the Saudi Pro League. The competition aims to attract more stars who may not be finding opportunities in European leagues, offering them consistent playing time and substantial financial incentives to persuade them to join their cause.

Players who have already shone in Europe are starting to consider the prospect of moving to the Saudi Pro League and land one last lucrative contract before hanging up their boots.

Karim Benzema, for instance, is reportedly set to leave Real Madrid for Al Ittihad in the summer. However, it looks like more stars could follow in his footsteps, including a former World Cup champion.

Report: N’Golo Kante draws interest from Saudi Arabia

According to transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano, N’Golo Kante has drawn interest both from Al Nassr and Al Ittihad ahead of the 2023-24 season. His contract with Chelsea is up this summer, which is why his future looks uncertain.

Of course, The Blues are reportedly working to tie him down to a new deal, but the French midfielder can still sign a pre-contract with any other club. Kante, 32, missed much of the 2022-23 campaign due to injury.

However, we are still talking about a world-class player who would elevate the Saudi Pro League’s awareness. A World Cup champ in 2018, Kante would definitely be a stellar signing for this competition.

Didier Deschamps‘ men have ended the “curse of the champion,” making it out of the group stage after succeeding at Russia 2018, and their back-to-back title hopes remain alive.

While they’re still one of the world’s best teams, this French national team has many different faces in regard to the 2018 champions. For instance, N’Golo Kante is not on the roster, and therefore won’t play vs. Morocco.

Why is N’Golo Kante not playing against Morocco

N’Golo Kante is missing France’s semifinal against Morocco because he was ruled out of the 2022 World Cup due to a hamstring injury that required surgery. In October, Chelsea announced Kante would be on the sidelines for four months after going under the knife.

Do you think France will still manage to win the tournament?Using this World Cup Predictor, you can see every potential outcome of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Not long ago, a leak went viral on social media suggesting thatBayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski had gathered the most votes over the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. However, another leak shortly after that had the PSG star atop the list.

The Ballon d’Or gossip continued when Portuguese outlet RTP went even further by claiming that Messi had been told by France Football he would receive his seventh Golden Ball, an ideathat didn’t please Patrice Evra.

Patrice Evra firesshot at Lionel Messi over 2021 Ballon d’Or, claims N’Golo Kante deserves it more

For a long time, the Ballon d’Or battle seemed to be reduced to Messi and Ronaldo. But, over the last few years things have changed, with new names making their way into the best player of the year conversation.

Everyone in world soccer weighs in on this matter, and recently it was the turn for Patrice Evra. The French legend admitted toJournal du Dimanchethat he’s tired ofseeing Messi winthe Ballon d’Or and that he doesn’t deserve it this year.“In my opinion, this Ballon d’Or is for N’Golo Kante or Jorginho, they deserve it! I don’t understand why people say: ‘He’s just a midfielder.’ They have woneverything,” he said.

Evra added that if any of them doesn’t receive the award, it would be unfair. “What did he(Messi)won this year? Right, the Copa America. But what did he accomplishwith Barcelona?” the former France internationalcontinued.

Thierry Henry also weighs in on Ballon d’Or discussion

Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has also spoken about this subject. While he wasn’t as harsh on Messi as Evra, the iconic striker believes Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema has given reasons to win the prize.

“Let’s be realistic, I hopeit willbe him, Benzema. Lewandowski would have been chosen in 2020 if the award hadn’t been canceled. We can also talk about Jorginho because he won it all. And there’s Messi, who conqueredthe Copa America,” Henry said, as quoted by As.

As the ceremony was canceled last year, it’s normal that the expectations areeven higher now. Whether Messi will get his seventh Ballon d’Or or it will be the turn for another player is something that remains to be seen. We’ll know on November 29 if any of the previous leaks were correct.

Instead, UEFA Champions League winners Chelsea have two of theirs in the race for the prize, while runners-up Manchester City are also represented with the third nominee.

We wouldn’t be lying if we describe Barcelona and Juventus‘ campaigns asdisappointing to say the least. Instead, all the spotlight was on the aforementioned Premier League clubs, who reached the grand final that both Messi and Cristiano would have liked to play.

Three nominees to the 2020/21 UEFA Men’s Player of the Year

The final three nominees to the award werevoted by a jury composed of 24 coaches of the Euro 2020 national teams, 80 coaches of the teams that played in 2020/21 UCL and Europa League group stages, and 55 journalists selected by the European Sports Media group, onefrom each of UEFA’s member associations.

Chelsea midfield duoN’Golo Kante, who played a pivotal role in the Blues’ road to success winning MOTM awards in both semi-final legs and the final, and Jorginho, who has not only been crucial under Thomas Tuchel but also helped Italy in their continental success, finished in the top three.

Manchester City superstar Kevin De Bruyne is the other candidate, following a fantastic campaign in which Pep Guardiola‘s side was crowned in the Premier League and reached the UCL final for the first time.

2020/21 UEFA Men’s Player of the Year: Cristiano and Messi out of the shortlist

Lionel Messi and Cristiano aren’t among the nominees for the 2020/21 UEFA Men’s Player of the Year awardbecause they didn’t receive enough votes to be in the top-three shortlist.

They did finish in the top 10, but only the Argentine seemed close to being nominated, having earned 148 points. It would have made sense, as he shone despite Barca’s problems on the field and then won the long-awaited Copa America with Argentina. But, to be fair, the three final candidates are deservedly in contention.

On the other hand, Cristiano Ronaldo has only received 16 points from the jury. Individually, hedidn’t have a bad season at all, amassing 36 goals in 44games. But Juve were out of the UCL race early and had a sour finish to the Serie A season. Cristiano seemed to be as good as always, but unfortunately, he was overshadowed.