The five-time Ballon d’Or winner missed a Pro League match despite being able to train with the team that week, leaving Saudi bosses unhappy.
Cristiano Ronaldo strikes for the second time in Saudi Arabia (Image: Getty Images)
If there is ever a footballer concerned about the size of the legacy he will leave behind, it has to be Cristiano Ronaldo. That’s why his continued strikes are a rare miscarriage of justice.
The legacy Ronaldo wants to leave behind goes beyond numbers, even if his pursuit of 1,000 goals suggests otherwise. The legacy Ronaldo wants to leave behind isn’t just his personal brilliance, even though his own marketing as a brand has always shown that to be the case.
Although difficult for some to recognize, Ronaldo wants to leave a legacy as a team player. His dedication to the cause of his country is proof of that.
read more: Breaking news: Cristiano Ronaldo again absent from Al Nasr team following strike controversyread more: Michael Carrick changes Manchester United dressing room after Ruben Amorim’s ‘silence’
And he always maintained that the best way to contribute to a team was to have a single-minded attitude toward personal excellence. You can be irritable, throw a tantrum, be overly demonstrative, or enjoy your accomplishments, and still be a team player.
And that has largely been the case throughout Ronaldo’s incredible career. But his industrial action in Saudi Arabia, the latest of which was his non-participation in Al Nasr’s match against Al Ittihad on Friday, is only the low point in the second half of his illustrious career.
Whatever the political machinations behind his ‘strike’, the bottom line is that Ronaldo is being paid £488,000 a day to do his best for the team. And only if you are fit to play can you get on the pitch and give your best.
Cristiano Ronaldo is unhappy with Karim Benzema’s move from Al Ittihad to Al Hilal in the transfer window (Image: Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)
From afar, it looks like a strange game for him to be playing, especially if he’s looking to reach 1,000 goals. Ronaldo’s Al Nasr contract appears to have a release clause of £43.5 million, but no European club would likely pay that kind of money to a footballer in his 40s.
Any argument that his signature makes commercial sense falls apart once you understand that commercial value is dependent on a player’s play. And Ronaldo won’t be in Europe’s top teams. At best, he will come on as an impactful substitute. What do you think will happen with Ronaldo?
Ronaldo, who just turned 41, knows he has relatively few games left in his career, even if he is in good shape, assuming he does not want to play at the lower levels of the professional pyramid. That’s why staying in the Saudi Pro League seems to give him the best chance of reaching the magical four-figure goal mark.
The rest of this season with Al Nasr, next season and some international opportunities should be enough for him to achieve that. But the statement from the Saudi Professional League was ominous.
Cristiano Ronaldo has a contract with Al Nassr until the end of next season (Image: Al Nassr Football Club/AFP via G)
A spokesperson said: “Cristiano has been fully involved with Al Nasr since joining and has played a key role in the club’s growth and ambitions.” “Like any elite player, he wants to win. But no one, no matter how important, makes decisions beyond his own club.”
It’s called a warning shot. The irony, of course, is that by going on strike, Ronaldo is reducing his chances of reaching 1,000 goals. He can’t score if he’s not playing.
But that doesn’t make this action selfless. It would ruin the league he is paid to promote – and it is a rare blunder from a great soccer player.
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