JAKARTA - Al Nassr star Cristiano Ronaldo will stand his ground and boycott the second consecutive league match after not receiving concrete assurances that the Public Investment Fund (PIF) will make changes regarding the management of the Saudi Pro League (Saudi Pro League) club.
Launching ESPN, if there is no guaranteed change in the coming weeks, Ronaldo will ask to leave in June 2026.
The Portuguese striker refused to play for his club in a 1-0 league win over Al Riyadh on Monday, February 2, 2026, in protest, arguing that PIF did not invest enough in Al Nassr and instead gave the advantage to rival Al Hilal.
Ronaldo tried to block the transfer of French star Karim Benzema from Al Ittihad to Al Hilal on Monday as he felt the move was unfair and indicated that PIF wanted to pave the way for Al Hilal to win the title.
Ronaldo, who has been training with his team this week, uploaded a photo of himself to his social media on Wednesday, February 4, 2026. In the photo, he is wearing the club's training uniform.
However, on the same day, the official account of Al Nassr X only had photos of coach Jorge Jesus and Ronaldo's teammates practicing.
He has explained behind the scenes that his return to the field depends on the immediate reactivation of the management authority of Al Nassr and of course the intervention in the transfer market that has just closed does not happen again in the middle of the year.
Ronaldo's anger was actually triggered by events in recent months when Al Nassr's sports director, Simao Coutinho, and club CEO Jose Semedo - both Portuguese citizens - were suspended from their positions by the PIF.
This is the step that made Ronaldo angry and of course hindered the arrival of top players for the team coached by Jorge Jesus. In addition, there was a significant cut in the club's spending.
On the other hand, Al Hilal received a large injection of funds from Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud, a billionaire businessman who is one of the club's donors, to strengthen the squad.
All of Al Hilal's signings in this winter transfer window, including Benzema, are funded by Prince Al Waleed, who is part of a group that owns 25 percent of the club, with the remaining 75 percent owned by PIF.
Ronaldo, who has not won a major title since joining Al Nassr in 2022, was furious at the situation. Although he has offers to leave the club now, especially from Europe and the United States, he does not want to do so because it could hinder his preparations for the 2026 World Cup.
The former Real Madrid star signed a contract extension last summer with Al Nassr until June 2027 and has a release clause of 50 million euros (Rp992.9 billion).
The Saudi Pro League certainly does not want to lose its biggest ambassador. Therefore, Al Nassr and PIF have promised big investments to Ronaldo in the summer, with his Portugal teammate Bruno Fernandes from Manchester United considered as a potential additional player among other big names.
Meanwhile, Al Hilal CEO Esteve Calzada said he did not understand Al Nassr's frustration and Ronaldo.
"You should ask them. We focus on ourselves. In the end, it doesn't mean they (Al Nassr) had a bad summer transfer market with the arrival of Joao Felix (and Kingsley) Coman."
"There is a rivalry and passion in this country that I never imagined. I think I've seen it all. People are crazy about recruitment (Benzema)," Calzada told radio Cadena Ser when asked about Ronaldo's anger.
Benzema's arrival is a big boost for Al Hilal, who are one point ahead of Al Nassr at the top of the Saudi Pro League table.
The 2022 Ballon d'Or winner was instrumental in Al Ittihad's triumphs in the Saudi Pro League and the King's Cup last season.
"We were looking for a striker, and a unique opportunity arose. A Ballon d'Or winner, with spectacular talent - the statistics speak for themselves."
"In addition, he doesn't need to adapt to our league. Everything went according to plan, everything became possible. We are very happy."
"I'm not surprised Benzema chose us because in the end Al Hilal is the most popular and powerful club not only in Saudi Arabia, but also in Asia."
"We are ready to compete for all the titles and we are in a good position to do so this season. Benzema's impact is not only on the pitch."
"We've seen the results in the commercial and media content departments. Although this is purely a recruitment in the sports field, we have worked hard to get the best results from our investment," said Calzada.
Apart from that, Al Nassr will face Al Ittihad on Friday, February 6, 2026.
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