Football legend Cristiano Ronaldo has pledged to remain in Saudi Arabia next season on Thursday.
He left Manchester United to join Al Nassr in January but his move has been shrouded in uncertainty in recent weeks following reports suggesting he could return to former club Real Madrid.
Ronaldo’s January signing for Al Nassr has been followed by speculation about how long he will stay, including reports of a swap deal with Saudi-owned Newcastle United which has now qualified for next season’s Champions League.
But the 38-year-old said in an official Saudi Pro League interview: “I am happy here, I want to continue here, I will continue here.
“And in my opinion if they continue to do the work that they want to do here, for the next five years, I think the Saudi league can be a top five league in the world. I will be part of your world, your culture, I will be here, I hope I make the people enjoy through my games, my performance, and to win things, but again, thank you for welcoming me, and I will try to give my best during the time that I will be here,” he added.
Ronaldo has scored 14 goals in 16 games since joining Al Nassr helping the club to second place in the Saudi Pro League behind Al Ittihad, who are managed by the Nuno Espirito Santo.
On finishing runners-up, Ronaldo said: ‘Well, my expectation was a little bit different, to be honest I expected to win something this year, but it is not always the way we think or the way we want, sometimes we need passion, consistency, and persistence to achieve the best things.