Cristiano Ronaldo gets media attention wherever he goes, whatever he does and says. And it’s normal. Everyone wants to get a piece of the living football legend. But sometimes, you get the sense these superstars are losing touch with reality.
Speaking to the media in Portugal, where his Al-Nassr are conducting pre-season preparations, Ronaldo told reporters he’s never coming back to Europe – because football there is losing quality. The statement itself may not be completely outworldy, but the timing is awful. Those words were said after Al-Nassr lost 5-0 to Celta Vigo, the team that narrowly escaped relegation from La Liga last season.”I’m 100 per cent sure I won’t return to any European club. I opened the way to the Saudi league, and now all the players are coming here. I won’t return to European football, the door is completely closed. I’m 38 years old. Also, European football has lost a lot of quality. The only league that, for me, has a lot of quality and is at a higher level than all the others is the Premier League. The Spanish league does not have that great quality. The Portuguese league is a good league, but it is not a top, top league. The German league has also lost a lot. I’m sure I won’t play in Europe again. I want to play in Saudi Arabia.”##NAJAVA_MECA_7377803##CR7 played 45 minutes of the match, which saw Marcelo Brozovic make his debut for the Saudi Pro League side. The first half was a goalless draw, but it all fell apart when Celta Vigo opened the floodgates after the break in Faro, Portugal. Gael Alonso got the opener just before the hour mark before Miguel Rodriguez and Jorgen Strand Larsen got doubles to ensure it was a five-goal thrashing without reply. Ronaldo also compared the Saudi Professional League with Major League Soccer.”The Saudi league is better than the MLS.”Lionel Messi will finish with one more goal than Cristiano Ronaldo in Europe’s top five leagues if they never play in them again 👀 pic.twitter.com/C6HHyv73Ay— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) July 17, 2023 Ronaldo chose to spout those words just a day after his long-standing rival Lionel Messi had signed for an MLS team. Was it a coincidence? Probably not.