Cristiano Ronaldo been accused of joining the Saudi Pro League primarily for financial reasons as he enters his second season in the country.
After leaving Manchester United in a controversial turn of events, Ronaldo joined Al-Nassr in December.
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While the Knights of Najd were contenders for the league title, they finished as runners-up to Al-Ittihad, falling short by five points.
Since arriving in Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo has defended the league’s competitiveness against critics who question its standard.
However, former Manchester United player Odion Ighalo has poured cold water over the idea that Ronaldo moved for any reason other than money.
Ighalo expressed that when players are young, they play for passion and do not care about money.
But as they approach the end of their careers, financial considerations become more significant.
He admitted that he now plays for money and is honest about it, unlike those who claim to play solely for passion.
Ighalo cited Ronaldo as an example, stating that despite earning far more than him, Ronaldo still chose to move to Saudi Arabia, likely for financial gains.
“When you are young, yes, you play for passion. Back then, you don’t care about money.
“But at my age, I am in the final stretch of my career, I don’t know if it will be 1, 2 years or when God will tell it to stop,” he told OmaSportsTV.
“I know it won’t be more than 3 years. I’ve played for passion all my life, now it’s for money.
“I’m not one of those players who come and say: ‘I play for passion’. Brother, it’s money. At the end of the day, it’s money.
“Is Ronaldo still playing out of passion? Ronaldo has earned 100 times more than I have in my entire life and yet he went to Saudi Arabia. Did he do that out of passion? It’s for money, bro.”
Ighalo himself spent the past three seasons playing in Saudi Arabia for Al-Shabab and Al-Hilal, winning the league title and the Golden Boot award in his first campaign with the latter.
On the other hand, Ronaldo has defended the Saudi league and claimed it is better than Major League Soccer (MLS) after Lionel Messi declined a move to Saudi Arabia and joined Inter Miami instead.
Ronaldo believes that more top players will come to Saudi Arabia in the future, and he has ruled out a return to any European club.
“The Saudi league is better than MLS. Now all the players are coming here. In one year, more top players will come to Saudi Arabia.
“I opened the way to the Saudi league, and now all the players are coming here,” he said.
“I’m 100 per cent sure I won’t return to any European club. I’m 38 years old. European football has lost a lot of quality.
“The only valid one and still doing good is the (English) Premier League. They’re way ahead of all the other leagues.”
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Recently, Jordan Henderson and Fabinho joined Saudi sides Al-Ettifaq and are expected to make their moves to Saudi Arabia, joining players like Ruben Neves, Karim Benzema, and Roberto Firmino.
The moves are financed by the Saudi state’s Public Investment Fund, which owns the four largest teams in the division.
