Tuesday, January 3, 2023 – 10:59 PM
From / Ahmed Zahran ..
ABU DHABI, 3rd January, 2020 (WAM) — Even before he touched the ball with his new team on the field, Portuguese football star Cristiano Ronaldo, 37, made his mark with his new club, Al-Nasr, Saudi Arabia, by attending a record attendance at the player’s presentation ceremony to the club’s fans.
Al-Nasr Club held a party to receive and present Ronaldo today at the “Marsool Park” stadium in the capital, Riyadh, before the start of the player’s career with the team in the coming period.
Al-Nasr had contracted with Ronaldo for two and a half seasons to support the team, which is currently leading the Saudi League, following 11 rounds of the competition.
Once the tickets for the player’s reception were released, they sold out in less than two hours amidst a huge and legendary turnout of the team’s adoring fans.
Reports indicated that the demand for tickets to attend the concert amounted to more than 100,000 fans within a few hours of putting the tickets on sale, leaving Ronaldo with this first mark with his new team.
Ronaldo arrived in Riyadh yesterday on his private plane, accompanied by his family, to attend the reception and start his career with the team.
Ronaldo wore the No. 7 shirt for Al-Nasr club upon entering the “Marsol Park” stadium to greet the fans who filled the stadium to the end to watch the captain of the Portuguese national team.
A light show was presented in conjunction with Ronaldo’s entry to the pitch, where the former Real Madrid, Manchester United and Juventus star shook hands with some of the children who were in the corridor leading to the pitch before going to greet the fans.
Before his introduction to the stadium, Ronaldo attended a press conference to introduce him to the media, during which he and his family expressed his happiness at moving to Saudi Arabia, praising the warm reception he received in Riyadh.
Ronaldo said: This is not only a new opportunity, but also to change the mentality of new generations. I received offers from several clubs in Brazil, Australia, America and even in Portugal, but I gave my word to this club, and I and my family feel happy here in Saudi Arabia and I want to play and win tournaments and enjoy football with the fans. .
He added: I broke all the numbers in Europe, and I want to break some numbers here. This contract is unique because I am a unique player as well.. I don’t care what people say regarding my move to Saudi Arabia, and I know that the Saudi League has a very great competitive spirit, and I watched the matches. many before coming here.
Earlier today, Ronaldo underwent a medical examination in preparation for joining group training for his new team, Al-Nasr.
Ronaldo broadcast a picture of him through his official account on the “Instagram” network, during the medical examination, and confirmed through it that he had passed the examination in preparation for his joining the group training following his arrival in Riyadh to start his career with Al-Nasr.
According to Saudi reports, the fans were racing intensely to book tickets to attend Ronaldo’s presentation ceremony.. And only four minutes following the tickets were released online, 44,000 fans applied for tickets, which cost 15 riyals, even though the official capacity of the Marsoul Park stadium is 30,000. fan.
Ronaldo ended his relationship with Manchester United last November, following the two parties’ relationship with each other worsened as a result of the criticism directed by the veteran player towards the club and its coach, Eric Ten Hag, in a media interview with the player prior to his participation with the Portuguese national team in the 2022 World Cup.
Ronaldo has a career full of achievements with the clubs he played for, including English Manchester United, Spanish Real Madrid and Italian Juventus, and it is expected that the accumulated experience of the great player will be good support for Al-Nasr team in the coming period.
Awad Mukhtar/ Ahmed Zahran/ Mustafa Badr El-Din
