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Cristiano Ronaldo is close to his first major trophy since signing for Al-Nassr in December 2022 but it is going to be tight. With three games of the Saudi Pro League remaining, his side are five points clear of their Riyadh rivals Al-Hilal, who amazingly are second despite not losing any of their 30 matches under Simone Inzaghi (also amazingly, the Italian is under some pressure). Al-Hilal have a game in hand, though, and the two meet next Tuesday in what could be a title decider. At a time when Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is cutting back on certain sporting investments, one of its highest-profile acquisitions is poised to make headlines.
Some have complained that it is all a little too convenient and that the authorities are engineering a Ronaldo win. Ivan Toney has scored 27 goals for Al-Ahli but that has not been enough to stop the Jeddah giants from falling out of the race that until the last few weeks was a four-way affair.
After penalty decisions not given in a 1-1 draw with Al-Fayha in early April, the England striker let loose. “When we tried to talk to the referee, he told us: ‘Focus on the AFC [Asian Football Confederation Champions League],’” Toney said. “How can the referee say this? … It’s clear what is being influenced here …” When asked who was benefiting from all this, Toney said: “We know who. Who are we chasing?”
His teammate Galeno agreed. “Hand over the trophy, that’s what they want,” the Brazilian winger wrote on X. “They want to knock us out of the championship by any means necessary, they want to hand the trophy to one person, a total lack of respect for our club.” Both players were fined by the Saudi Arabia football federation’s disciplinary and ethics committee.
Al-Ahli went on to win the AFC Champions League on 25 April, and when they went to Riyadh to face Al-Nassr four days later, the away fans sang of their continental triumph. The defender Merih Demiral ran around the pitch showing his medal to the home fans, who have never seen Al-Nassr win Asia’s premier title (though Al-Nassr are in the final of the Europa League equivalent, the imaginatively titled AFC Champions League Two on 16 May against Gamba Osaka of Japan).
Al-Nassr had the last laugh with a 2-0 victory in a bad-tempered game. After Ronaldo scored his 970th career goal, Kingsley Coman lashed home in the last minute. The former Bayern Munich forward then celebrated right in front of Toney and was joined by teammates, including Ronaldo, who then took aim again after the final whistle.
“I think this is not good for the league,” Ronaldo said of the criticism. “Everyone complains. This is football, this is not a war. We know we have to fight, everyone wants to win. But not everything is allowed. I am going to speak at the end of the season because I’ve seen many, many bad things.
“Many players have complained, doing posts on Instagram, on Facebook, speaking about the referees, speaking about the league, speaking about the project. This is not good. This is not the goal of the league.”
It’s been all good fun, though, and the 41-year-old added to it by sitting out two league games at the start of the year, because, so reports went, he felt PIF, which then owned the “Big Four” clubs, favoured Al-Hilal
Ronaldo may be happier now because last month the fund sold 70% of Al-Hilal to Kingdom Holding Company, a firm run by Prince al-Waleed bin Talal, a member of Saudi Arabia’s royal family. The sale, the fund said, “aligns with PIF’s strategy to maximise returns and redeploy capital within the domestic economy” as it seeks to drive “the development and diversification of Saudi Arabia”.
It adds to the off-pitch headlines of changes in the country’s strategy to become a sporting powerhouse. The image of the megastar lifting the trophy would surely go down well with authorities but Al-Nassr’s 3-1 loss on Sunday to Al-Qadsiah, coached by Brendan Rodgers, ended a run of 20 wins in all competitions and could bring about a grandstand finish, even if Al-Nassr are still in the driving seat.
Al-Nassr’s success is down to appointing Jorge Jesus, the wily Portuguese veteran who led them on a world record 34-game winning streak two years ago.
Under Jesus, the stars still shine but as part of a more cohesive and coherent system and Al-Nassr, for the first time since Ronaldo arrived, look like a real team. In attack, João Félix has been excellent along with Sadio Mané and the former France international Coman, and the defence, featuring the centre-backs Iñigo Martínez and Mohamed Simakan along with Saudi players such as Nawaf Boushal and Abdulelah al-Amri, have excelled.
And then there is Ronaldo. Despite 25 league goals, he may miss out on a third successive golden boot but a first Saudi Pro League title would more than make up for it.
