02 May 2023 , 12:33
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Cristiano Ronaldo is desperate to leave Al-Nassr but his attempts to return to Real Madrid in a bid to return to the Spanish capital have been rejected, it has been claimed.
Al-Nassr have seen their lead at the top of the Saudi Arabian top division slip away in recent weeks after Ronaldo completed a stunning move to the club in January. They currently languish three points off league leaders Al-Ittihad, who also have a game in hand.
The arrival of the Portuguese superstar – in a world record deal worth £173million per year – hiked up the expectations in Riyadh. Ronaldo has netted 12 league goals in 15 games for his new club, but it has coincided with a decline in results as Al-Nassr lost top spot and were eliminated from the Saudi Arabian Cup.
Ronaldo has scored just once in his most recent four appearances for the Saudi Arabian club and has failed to find the net in six of his last nine outings. There has been a downturn in his goal return which has coincided with the side being able to find solutions around that.
A report in El Nacional has claimed that the Portuguese superstar is desperate to leave Riyadh after just four months. Furthermore, he and his partner Georgina Rodriguez are both keen to return to Madrid – the city in which they met.
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Ronaldo’s first choice option was to return to Real Madrid – where he bagged a scarcely believable 450 goals in 438 first-team appearances – but this was rejected by club president Florentino Perez, who does not see the forward as benefiting the club’s sporting project.
Cristiano Ronaldo signed a two-year deal with Al-Nassr but has become increasingly frustrated (Getty Images)Have Your Say! What do you make of Ronaldo’s decision to move to Saudi Arabia? Tell us what you think here.
However, it has been claimed that Perez has offered Ronaldo an ambassadorial role at the club when he hangs up his boots – something that the player has not yet decided to do. Ronaldo was also offered to Atletico Madrid, but despite this tempting boss Diego Simeone, the club decided against the switch due to the strong feeling amongst the club’s fanbase.
Ronaldo left Manchester United in November after his explosive interview with Piers Morgan, which resulted in him leaving Old Trafford by mutual consent. It is believed there was an agreement between the player and the club that he would not receive payment for the remaining seven months of his contract.
That came after Ronaldo fell out of Erik ten Hag’s preferred starting line-up with the veteran seemingly unwilling to accept his reduced status within the squad.