Former Manchester United striker Odion Ighalo wants Cristiano Ronaldo to join a Saudi Arabian club, as speculation over the Portuguese’s future ramps up a notch.
Ronaldo and United parted company on the eve of the World Cup following the striker’s explosive Talk TV interview with Piers Morgan in which he admitted feeling ‘betrayed’ by the club and manager Erik ten Hag. He’d been struggling for regular starts under the new boss, having sought an exit in the summer without success.
That means Ronaldo is competing in the World Cup in Qatar without a club, an unprecedented situation for a player of his calibre. Recent reports have claimed the 37-year-old is close to agreeing a contract worth more than £400m to join Saudi Arabia side Al Nassr.
And Ighalo, who played for United on loan in the 2019/20 campaign and is now in the Saudi Professional League with Al Hilal, would welcome such a move.
“Cristiano Ronaldo is hugely ambitious, and I think he will want to play in a Champions League team and end his career well, but you never can say,” Ighalo told The Athletic.
“He has the decision to make. I wish him all the best in that decision, and hopefully, he does come to Saudi Arabia.
“I would love for him to come to Saudi because he would boost the league and add more fanbase to the league. People who aren’t already watching will start to engage with the league and see something they are missing.”
Ronaldo and his representative Jorge Mendes are holding out for Champions League football, amid links with Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid, but such a move seems unlikely at this stage of his career.
