Al-Ahli Club Chief Gives ‘Credit’ to Cristiano Ronaldo After Portugal Captain Goes on Strike at Al-Nassr

Cristiano Ronaldo is undoubtedly the key reason for the Saudi Pro League’s rise.

The sporting director of one of Al-Nassr’s rivals has now praised the Portuguese superstar for going on strike earlier this month.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s Strike at Al-Nassr Remains the Talking Point in Saudi Arabia

Ronaldo went on strike at Al-Nassr this month, demanding key changes at the club. His main demands reportedly included an equal distribution of PIF funds among the four clubs under their umbrella, accusing them of favoring Al Hilal.

The other issue he raised was the non-payment of wages at the club, an issue that was resolved last week. The swift changes saw the Portugal club return to action after sitting out three matches and record a 2-0 win over Al Fateh.

Al-Ahli Sporting Director Rui Pedro has now spoken to Sky Sports about the Portuguese superstar going on strike, saying he has a lot of respect for him. However, he declined to comment on the strike or its reasons, saying it was not his place.

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“All of us, me being Portuguese, especially and particularly, I have the utmost respect for Cristiano Ronaldo and all the Portuguese professionals here in Saudi Arabia. It’s not my place to speak about the way that he decided to make his point. I’m sure he has his own reasons.”

Pedro still wanted to credit Ronaldo for his dedication at making everything professional in the league, saying that many have arrived in the country because of him. He added that the Al-Nassr club captain is also consistently showing that he can deliver on the pitch and has not taken things lightly, saying:

“What I can say is that if we’re all here today, if we’re all here working in Saudi Arabia, most of the responsibility, most of the credit goes to Cristiano Ronaldo. He opened the doors to the rest of the world to Saudi Arabia. I think that’s the biggest compliment that you can offer him and what he’s been doing game after game, he keeps scoring, he keeps raising the numbers to unimaginable numbers.”

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Cristiano Ronaldo has 18 months left on his contract at Al-Nassr, but clubs in Europe are keeping tabs on his situation. Reports earlier this month suggested that he has a $59 million release clause in his contract, and Turkish Super Lig sides were interested in activating it to lure him to the league when the winter window opens.