Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo, the star of Al Nasr Saudi Arabia, has overcome the consequences of the harsh period he has lived since the beginning of the current season 2022-2023 with his former team Manchester United.
On 22 November 2022, Manchester United terminated Cristiano's contract by mutual consent after the player sharply criticized the club's management and coaches Ralf Rangnick and Erik ten Hag in a television interview.
The curtain came down on Cristiano's second spell with the Red Devils with a "bitter" end after the Portuguese said he felt betrayed by the club.
Ronaldo moved to Saudi Arabia's Al Nassr on a free transfer, days after the end of the World Cup in Qatar, specifically on December 30, 2022.
He admitted "Don" – in a press conference before the match Portugal and Liechtenstein – that he has overcome that bad period, stressing that he discovered his true friends in those difficult days.
🗣️ Cristiano Ronaldo: “Manchester United exit? When we are at the top of the mountain, we often don’t see what’s below. I went through a bad phase of my career, I have no problems admitting that. But life moves on.” pic.twitter.com/GsoF9jS4ZS
— TC (@totalcristiano) March 22, 2023
The site highlighted "Ojojo" (Ojojo) Portuguese Cristiano's remarks, in which he said, "I have no problem admitting that I went through a bad phase of my professional career, but life goes on whether I work well or not."
"There is no time for regrets, sometimes you have to go through some difficult circumstances to see who is on your side and discover true friends in those moments," he added.
"When you're on top of the mountain you can't often see what's down, now I'm more willing to learn, I realise that what happened to me was important, I'm a better man now," the Portuguese concluded.
If Ronaldo participates in Portugal's match against Liechtenstein scheduled for Thursday in the first round of qualifying for the European Cup (Euro 2024), he will become the player who has played the most international matches with 197, surpassing Kuwait's Bader Al-Mutawa, according to the Spanish newspaper "Marca".
On the other hand, the best player in the world 5 times praised the Saudi league competitions, stressing that in a matter of years it will be among the best in the world.
Cristiano said that "the Saudi league is very competitive, it is true that it is not like the English Premier League, I will not lie, but it is a league that surprised me positively."
Cristiano Ronaldo on Al Nassr move: “Saudi’s is very competitive league. It's not Premier League, I'm not going to lie, but it's a league that left me positively surprised” 🇸🇦🤝🏻
“In 5,6,7 years, if they continue with the plan, it will be the 4th, 5th league in the world”. pic.twitter.com/Yy4BcRLJ1A
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 22, 2023
"If they (the Saudis) follow the plan they have set, in 5 to 7 years, the Saudi league will be the fourth or fifth in the world," he said.
Al-Nasr are second in the Saudi league table with 49 points, one point behind leaders Ittihad Jeddah.