Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo controls a ball during the Portugal’s official training on the eve of the group H World Cup soccer match between Portugal and Ghana at the Al Shahaniya SC training site in Al Shahaniya, Qatar, Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Cristiano Ronaldo’s future in the Saudi Pro League is seemingly up in the air again after venting his frustration following Al-Nassr’s 2-0 win over rivals Al-Ahli that put his side on the brink of winning the title.
Ronaldo opened the scoring for Al-Nassr in the 75th minute before Kingsley Coman wrapped up proceedings in the 90th minute, but it was the Portugal icon’s comments after the game that grabbed the headlines.
The 41-year-old hit out at Al-Nassr’s rivals for their recent complaints, stating that the criticism is ‘not good for the league’ and ‘this is football, not a war’ – calling for more professionalism.
There has recently been criticism from some players over the officiating in the division, something that Ronaldo believes is damaging the league’s reputation, and there has been talk that the Portuguese star could retire soon.
However, body language expert Darren Stanton doesn’t believe this to be the case, claiming that he could resume his rivalry with Lionel Messi in MLS and even play on into his 50s.
Stanton, who is also known as the human lie detector, said on behalf of AceOdds: “Cristiano Ronaldo has evolved. He seems more grounded, more focused, but he’s still very passionate about the game and his craft, but he’s clearly not happy with everything in Saudi Arabia.
“We see him speaking out after the game about the Al-Ahli players and what they’ve been saying about Al-Nassr and the league, and he clearly takes issue with that. His anger about their behaviour is obvious. We see it flash across his face.
“We saw this anger when he was leaving Manchester United and wasn’t feeling like he was getting the respect he was due but it’s different here. He seems more focused, congruent and his verbal and non-verbal communication is consistent. He’s being authentic and his concern for the integrity of the Saudi Pro League is genuine.
“I think Ronaldo sees the other players who have come to Saudi Arabia from Europe as he has done and believes they are not pulling weight as professionals to raise the standards and profile of the competition. He sets his standards for professionalism higher, and he wants to police things and have that authority.”
He then went on to speak about potential retirement, and what’s in store next for the five-time Ballon d’Or winner. He said: “From his demeanor and expressions I would be surprised if his retirement as a player were to be imminent. Of course, there will come a point where he can’t live up to his own standards and make that decision to step away. He’s just perturbed by the way others aren’t meeting the standard required, but he might not hang around for too much longer if people don’t step up in the Saudi Pro League.
“He’ll want to move on and into some other league or some sort of role, be it as a manager or a director of football or similar, because he does seem incredibly passionate about the game and any potential declines in standards as he sees it. Maybe he will look to take on another new frontier before he calls it time and head out to the USA as David Beckham and Lionel Messi did.
“I don’t think he is quite ready to call it a day, and if the right opportunity presents itself I think he could very well go anywhere in the world, and I get the sense that Ronaldo still feels that there are a lot of things he still needs to achieve in his professional career. Winning the World Cup this summer is one of those things and his 1,000 goals of course but I think it’s going to be fascinating to see what happens next because he’s definitely harbouring something. He’s still got an axe to grind.”
Stanton ambitiously added: “I don’t think he will ever be the sort of player that’s going to be content to be sitting at the sidelines. He wants to get stuck in. He’s got many, many games left in him even at his age. He could even play into his 50s like Sir Stanley Matthews did looking at him today, not only his physical condition but his focus and determination.”
