Cristiano Ronaldo did not travel with Al-Nassr for their Saudi Pro League match against Al-Riyadh, and in Saudi Arabia that kind of absence is never small news. When the team list was released and Ronaldo’s name was missing, everything changed. The match itself almost became irrelevant. The real story became about power, control, ambition, and a 40-year-old global icon who is still desperate to win and refuses to fade quietly.
Ronaldo has been many things in his career. He has been a goal machine, a leader, a problem, a saviour, a symbol, and sometimes a storm that follows wherever he goes. In Riyadh, his presence was meant to be the final piece of Saudi football’s global revolution. He arrived in 2022 as the biggest name the league had ever seen, leaving Manchester United in chaos and stepping into a new world where money was limitless and promises were bold.
At Al-Nassr, Ronaldo became the highest-paid footballer in history. The numbers were shocking. Around £177 million per year. A salary that sent a message to the world that Saudi Arabia was no longer watching football from the outside. It wanted to own the conversation. Ronaldo was the face of that plan.
But football is never just about money. It is about winning. And this is where the story begins to crack.
Ronaldo has scored goals in Saudi Arabia. Many goals. He has broken records, finished as top scorer, and continued his personal chase toward 1,000 career goals. At 40 years old, he is still obsessed with that number. Every goal brings him closer. Every game matters. When he scored against Al-Kholood recently, he reached 961 career goals. Only 39 left. For Ronaldo, that number is not fantasy. It is a mission.
Yet while goals have flowed, trophies have not.
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Since joining Al-Nassr, Ronaldo has won only one trophy. The Arab Club Champions Cup in 2023. It was celebrated loudly, but deep down everyone knew it was not enough. Ronaldo does not move for small cups. He lives for league titles, continental trophies, and history.
Al-Nassr finished second in the league twice after his arrival. Then last season, they slipped further back and finished third, 13 points behind champions Al-Ittihad. In cup competitions, pain followed again and again. A King’s Cup final loss to Al-Hilal on penalties. A Champions League semi-final defeat to Japan’s Kawasaki Frontale. This season, Al-Nassr are not even in the top Asian competition. They dropped into the second-tier Asian Champions League Two.
For a man who has lifted the Champions League five times, this is not just frustrating. It is humiliating.
What makes it worse is who is winning around him.
Al-Hilal keep getting stronger. Al-Ittihad keep lifting trophies. Al-Ahli have become Asian champions. Ronaldo has watched former teammates and rivals celebrate while he stands empty-handed. Karim Benzema won the league. Ruben Neves won the league. Riyad Mahrez lifted continental silverware. These are players Ronaldo knows well. Players he believes he is still better than. Players whose success hurts him deeply.
This is not about ego alone. It is about legacy.
Ronaldo did not come to Saudi Arabia to retire quietly. He came to dominate. He came to win. He came to prove that even at the end of his career, he is still the standard. When that does not happen, frustration builds fast.
According to reports from Portugal, Ronaldo refused to play against Al-Riyadh. The reason, it is said, is his growing anger at how Al-Nassr is being run by the Public Investment Fund. PIF controls Al-Nassr, but it also controls Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Ahli. In theory, all four clubs are equal. In reality, Ronaldo does not believe that.
Inside Saudi football, there is a growing belief that Al-Hilal are being favoured. They attract bigger names. They move faster in the transfer market. They seem more organised, more ambitious, more ruthless. And now, the final blow came.
Karim Benzema is heading to Al-Hilal.
For Ronaldo, this is personal.
Benzema was his partner at Real Madrid. Together they dominated Europe. Benzema left Saudi rivals Al-Ittihad after falling out with the club and training alone. When his contract was terminated, Al-Hilal moved quickly. Late on Monday, the deal was done.
Ronaldo saw it as a direct insult.
Sources close to Al-Nassr say Ronaldo is simply ultra-competitive. He does not like seeing rival clubs get stronger. He especially does not like seeing a former teammate, and Ballon d’Or winner, join the club he sees as his biggest obstacle.
In his mind, if PIF truly wants balance, why allow Al-Hilal to grow even stronger while Al-Nassr stand still?
This anger is not new. Before Ronaldo signed a new two-year contract in June 2025, there were serious talks about him leaving. A loan move to Al-Hilal was discussed quietly. The idea of Ronaldo and Neymar in the same team excited many. But the move never happened, and Ronaldo stayed loyal to Al-Nassr.
Now, that loyalty feels fragile.
Al-Nassr’s transfer activity has slowed. While rivals continue to invest smartly, Al-Nassr have gone quiet. Joao Felix and Kingsley Coman arrived in the summer, but January passed with little action. Meanwhile, Al-Hilal signed Pablo Mari and one of France’s most exciting young forwards, Mohamed Kader Meite.
Ronaldo notices everything.
Saudi football itself is changing. The early years were wild. Huge fees. Huge salaries. Neymar arrived for nearly £80 million. Mitrovic, Neves, Mane, Laporte, Mahrez, Kante, Fabinho, Firmino, all followed. It felt unstoppable.
But now, reality is setting in.
The Saudi government wants sustainability. New financial rules arrived in 2025. Clubs are spending less. Projects are being delayed. Even Neom, the futuristic city meant to host winter games and football dreams, is being scaled back. The ski resort is delayed. Costs are rising. The message is clear. The era of endless spending is slowing down.
For Ronaldo, this is dangerous timing.
He is running out of years. His contract runs until 2027. His body is still strong, but time is undefeated. Every season without trophies hurts his legacy. Every rival celebration feels louder.
And when Ronaldo feels cornered, history shows he does not stay silent.
Manchester United fans remember what happens next.
In 2022, Ronaldo gave an explosive interview. He attacked the club, the facilities, the structure, and the manager. He called United a marketing club. He burned bridges without fear. When it was over, he did not apologise. He said he was happy with how things played out.
That is the Ronaldo Al-Nassr must now deal with.
He has not spoken yet. That silence is loud.
Will he push for more signings? Will he demand change inside PIF? Will he force a move elsewhere? Or will this end like Manchester United, with another dramatic exit?
Saudi Arabia wanted Ronaldo as a symbol of its football rise. But symbols come with power. And Ronaldo knows his power. He knows his value. He knows that even now, at 40, the league still revolves around him.
The next few weeks will decide everything.
If Al-Nassr respond, invest, and show ambition, Ronaldo may stay and fight. If not, this could be the beginning of the end of his Saudi chapter.
One thing is certain. Cristiano Ronaldo never fades quietly. When he feels blocked, he pushes harder. When he feels disrespected, he explodes.
Saudi football is about to learn that lesson again.
