Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr Strike Justified by Unlikely Figure

Ronaldo has constructed a golden echo chamber for himself in Saudi Arabia.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s temper tantrum has been overlooked. | Khalid Alhaj/MB Media/Getty Images

Al Nassr manager Jorge Jesus backed Cristiano Ronaldo in his staunch belief that the Saudi Pro League club is fighting against an economic disadvantage in the Kingdom’s top flight.

Ronaldo skipped two league matches earlier this month as part of a protest against the perceived financial disparity in Saudi Arabian soccer. According to numerous reports, the highest-paid player on the planet was dismayed by the lack of funds diverted towards new transfers in the winter window—especially compared to Al Hilal’s influx of talent, topped off by the acquisition of his former Real Madrid teammate Karim Benzema.

As a former Al Hilal manager Jesus considered himself well placed to weigh in on the hot topic. “I’ve already been at Al Hilal. I’ve been on the other side, so I know what that’s like,” he mused after Ronaldo returned to the lineup and the scoresheet on Saturday. “I’ve already benefited from it. They have more economic power.

“When I was there, I benefited as a coach. It’s normal. Al Nassr, with different resources, has to compete for the top spots. We have to continue to be strong.”

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Ronaldo Being Fed His Own Fantasies

Jorge Jesus (left) is a big fan of Cristiano Ronaldo. | WUN SUEN/AFP/Getty Images

Ronaldo has constructed himself a golden echo chamber in Saudi Arabia. With a pair of fellow former Sporting CP academy players on the board of Al Nassr and his compatriot Jesus in the dugout, seemingly no one at the club is in a position (or has any inclination) to offer a counter-argument.

It took a public statement from the league—which is backed by one of the wealthiest organizations on the planet—to point out to Ronaldo that he could not have a say in other clubs’ transfer business. Yet, it’s not as though Al Nassr have been exactly parsimonious.

Since Ronaldo’s arrival in Saudi Arabia, Al Hilal have indeed comfortably outspent Al Nassr when it comes to transfer fees, splashing around $668 million compared to thier $482 million. However, Jesus and Ronaldo are the league’s second-biggest spenders during this period which, crucially, does not take into consideration wages. Given Ronaldo has reportedly earned somewhere in the region of $700 million during his three years in Saudi Arabia, the claims of poverty fall flat.

Jesus is still blindly painting a picture of inferiority. “That’s why I was hired, to reduce the gap between Al Hilal and Al Nassr, in terms of titles and points,” he declared. “And that’s what we’re doing. We have a lot of confidence in Al Nassr’s structure, a structure that, little by little, is increasingly managing to balance the group.

“But not only the group of players who play, but also a group off the field, a team that is aware of the difficulties, a team that knows it will be fighting against opponents with greater economic power, not sporting power.”

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Can Cristiano Ronaldo End Saudi Trophy Wait?

Cristiano Ronaldo is yet to win a major title in Saudi Arabia. | Thomas Tang/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images

Jesus's questionable logic doesn’t quite extend to this season’s title ambitions. “We are in the championship fight, we are one point behind the leaders, something Al Nassr hasn’t been able to do,” he reflected this weekend.

“In recent years, Al Nassr has finished 16 or 14 points behind the lead. This year we don’t want that to happen, I don’t know what will happen. We are confident that we can compete for the top spots until the end.”

Since winning the top flight in 2018–19—pre-Jesus, Ronaldo and PIF—Al Nassr have tiptoed between second and third, never getting closer than five points behind the leaders. During each of Ronaldo’s two full seasons in Saudi, the gap has stretched to double digits.

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Al Nassr’s Saudi Pro League Struggles

Season	Al Nassr Position	Points Behind Leaders
2018–19	1st	—
2019–20	2nd	8
2020–21	3rd	5
2021–22	3rd	6
2022–23	2nd	5
2023–24	2nd	14
2024–25	3rd	13

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This year’s race is much closer despite the supposedly paltry investment. Flanked by a fleet of forwards on the right side of 40, Ronaldo has benefitted from the arrival of Kingsley Coman and João Félix in particular.

Counterintuitively, Al Nassr’s greatest strength lies at the other end of the pitch: they boast the second-best defensive record in the division and have conceded the fewest shots. Despite the lumbering presence of a sulking 41-year-old upfront, Al Nassr have the most aggressive press in the Pro League, which has also worked as an attacking weapon—the club leads the top flight with seven goals from high turnovers.

If Al Nassr are to keep pace with Al Hilal at the table’s summit, maintaining that stubborn backline could be the key.

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