Piers Morgan aimed a strange criticism at Lionel Messi as he defended Cristiano Ronaldo ’s move to Saudi Arabia.
Ronaldo completed a stunning move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr earlier this month and is expected to earn in the region of £173million per year. The deal comes after Ronaldo ended his relationship with Manchester United by mutual consent in November following a bombshell interview with Morgan.
Morgan has now claimed that Ronaldo’s move to the Middle East “gives him an edge” over Messi in a suggestion that directly contradicts his own interview with Ronaldo from two months ago, where the polemic broadcaster praised the Portuguese player for not wanting to move to Saudi Arabia.
"If it was just about money, you'd be in Saudi Arabia earning this king's ransom, but that's not what motivates you," Morgan preened at Ronaldo, before adding: "You want to keep at the top." Ronaldo, in nodding acknowledgement, responded: "Exactly."
Despite the best efforts of the 37-year-old to secure a transfer to a top club in Europe, none were interested in signing the striker based on his wage demands and continuing diminishing returns on the pitch. Ronaldo had been dropped from selection by both Manchester United and Portugal.
Ronaldo has been criticised in some quarters for choosing to end his career in Saudi Arabia. Former Liverpool star Jamie Carragher compared him negatively with Messi, following the Argentine's World Cup win.
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"In some ways it's a sad end for him, Carragher told Sky Sports. "Two of the greatest players in Messi and Ronaldo - Ronaldo has finished his career during an interview with Piers Morgan and Messi has won the World Cup. It's not the best way to go out."
However, Morgan has now performed a sharp U-turn on his idea of playing in Saudi Arabia, claiming in an interview with Tatler : “Thanks to the fall-out from our interview, Ronaldo signed the biggest transfer deal in football history, and is now the world’s highest-paid athlete, at the age of 37.
“He’s also doing what he’s done throughout his career, and which for me gives him the edge over Messi, and that’s challenge himself in a new country, and new league, at a time when football in the Middle East is really taking off, as we saw at the Qatar World Cup where Morocco reached the semi-finals and Saudi Arabia beat the eventual winners, Messi’s Argentina.”
Morgan continued, as he insisted that Ronaldo was actually the winner from the past few months and with his controversial interview – that saw his career in European club football ended: “He wanted freedom from Manchester United, where he rightly felt he had been badly disrespected by both the manager and senior club executives.
“Ideally, I think he’d have preferred to play for another top club in the Champions League for a year or two, but Al Nassr made him a staggering offer, and I think the fresh challenge of raising the profile of football in a new region of the world, at the twilight of his incredible career, really appealed to him.”
Responding to Carragher’s criticism, Morgan added another personal jibe as he refused to countenance any Ronaldo questions: “He (Carragher) didn’t even get to finish his career with an interview with me – he wasn’t big enough.”
Despite both Morgan and Ronaldo agreeing in November that it was admirable that the player had not moved to Saudi Arabia, Piers continued: “He’s definitely happy. I’ve swapped a few texts with him, and he’s absolutely loving it, on and off the pitch.”
