Preparing to wear the captain’s armband as he steps out onto the field in Saudi Arabian colours for the first time, a glamour tie with PSG may not be what Ronaldo envisaged for his debut, but the 37-year-old can bask in adulation from the first whistle until the last.
Despite his lingering desire to get his hands on the Champions League trophy one last time, Ronaldo – whose second spell at Manchester United came to a bitter end following an explosive interview with Piers Morgan – was lured to Saudi Arabia as he embarks on a new challenge in the twilight of his career.
Ronaldo will be in satisfactory company on Thursday, as the Portuguese’s Al-Nassr side sit at the top of the Saudi Pro League standings with 30 points to their name from 13 games this term, while Al-Hilal – the defending champions – are just one point behind in second with 29.
With several recognisable names in the final third alongside Ronaldo, the Riyadh All-Star XI will no doubt enjoy the occasion against Christophe Galtier’s men, but thoughts of victory should be at the forefront of their minds given the Parisiens’ recent struggles.
A title race is most certainly on the cards in Ligue 1 this term, as the reunion of the Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymartrifecta ended in misery during a 1-0 defeat to a depleted Rennes side on Sunday evening, where Hamari Traorescored the only goal of the game in the second half.
Having firstly seen their unbeaten league run come to an end with a 3-1 loss to Lens on New Year’s Day, PSG can now only boast a three-point lead over Les Sang et Or at the top of the Ligue 1 table, so will not exactly be in high spirits when they board the plane to Saudi Arabia.
However, the race for glory in the top flight has been pushed to the back of PSG’s minds until January 29, as they will meet sixth-tier side Pays de Cassel in the Coupe de France last 16 next Monday before returning to Ligue 1 action versus Reims in two weeks’ time.
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Ronaldo should skipper the Riyadh All-Star XI from the number nine spot this week, but another ex-Manchester United forward in Odion Ighalo is also set to be involved and could possibly push the five-time Ballon d’Or winner into a wide
role.Other standout attacking names in the Saudi ranks are Moussa Marega, Anderson Talisca and Andre Carillo, but Vincent Aboubakar has supposedly seen his Al-Nassr contract terminated in the wake of Ronaldo’s
signing.Salem Al-Dawsari – who came up with a stunning World Cup goal for Saudi Arabia against Messi’s Argentina – should also feature, but Al-Nassr goalkeeper David Ospina is out with an elbow injury.
