Cristiano Ronaldo has finally broken his silence on his dramatic Saudi strike.
The 41-year-old returned to action last week for Al-Nassr and scored a brace in their 4-0 victory over Al-Hazem on Saturday having previously made major waves with his high-profile strop.
Ronaldo, who earns £488,000-a-day, had been furious with what he perceived to be a lack of transfer backing for Al-Nassr from PIF compared to their rivals.
The situation was exacerbated further when Karim Benzema was granted a transfer to Al-Hilal and Ronaldo went on strike for three games.
His behaviour led to serious questions over his future in the league – despite his position as the biggest and most marketable name.
But when asked about the situation on Saturday, Ronaldo said: ‘I’m very happy. As I say so many times, I belong to Saudi Arabia.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in his side’s win over Al Hazem on Saturday
‘It’s a country that welcomed me, my family and my friends very well. I’m happy here. I want to continue here.
‘And the most important thing, it’s we keep pushing. We are there at the top.
‘Our job is to win, make pressure [on our title rivals], and let’s see. We are on track.
‘We’re back, we are good, we are confident. Game by game. We are in good shape. Let’s see what’s going to happen.’
Ronaldo’s actions had irritated the Saudi Pro League, with the top flight releasing a statement warning ‘no individual determines decisions beyond their own club’.
Title rivals Al-Hilal have a net spend £180million higher than that of his own team since the 2022-23 season, when he arrived.
And that’s despite both clubs, as well as Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli, all being majority owned by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF).
But Ronaldo is in an eye-watering wage and many feel he is in no position to complain about the finances of his opponents.
A recent statement shared with Daily Mail Sport from the league suggested that Ronaldo’s grievances were unfounded.
‘The Saudi Pro League is structured around a simple principle: every club operates independently under the same rules,’ they said.
‘Clubs have their own boards, their own executives and their own football leadership. Decisions on recruitment, spending and strategy sit with those clubs, within a financial framework designed to ensure sustainability and competitive balance. That framework applies equally across the league.
Ronaldo insists he is happy at Al-Nassr having returned to action following his strike
‘Cristiano has been fully engaged with Al Nassr since his arrival and has played an important role in the club’s growth and ambition. Like any elite competitor, he wants to win. But no individual – however significant – determines decisions beyond their own club.’
The spokesperson added that recent transfer activity had ‘demonstrated that independence clearly’.
Ronaldo wore the captain’s armband on his return to action last week and is still popular with the club’s fanbase despite his three-game exile; they were waving flags in his honour in his absence.
Al-Nassr are now top of the league by one point and Ronaldo will be desperate for his side to achieve glory this season, especially given that he is yet to win the title in Saudi Arabia.