sport news Cristiano Ronaldo is not having everything his own way in Saudi Arabia trends now
It's been just over two months since Cristiano Ronaldo put pen to paper on the most lucrative contract in football history as he agreed to join Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia.
The £175m-a-year deal made Ronaldo the highest-paid player in the world, and left fans intrigued as to how he would fare in the Middle East.
Was the 38-year-old just going for a big paycheck and to wind down his career? Or did he genuinely believe that he could make a major impact at his new club and prove that he remains one of the best players on the planet?
There have been glimpses of the Ronaldo that lit up European football for the best part of two decades, but it has been far from plain sailing for the Portuguese star.
Sportsmail takes a look at his opening weeks in Saudi Arabia, and how the move has worked out for him thus far.
Cristiano Ronaldo joined Al-Nassr in late December, and was unveiled a few days later
After Ronaldo signed on the dotted line in late December, fans were eager to see the five-time Ballon d'Or winner in action. But there was some confusion over when he'd actually be allowed to play.
Prior to his acrimonious exit from Manchester United, Ronaldo was handed a two-match ban for knocking a phone out of a fan's hand during a 1-0 defeat at Everton last April.
Yet there was some uncertainty as to whether this ban would carry over after he had left England.
Al-Nassr's first game of 2023 was due to be played on January 5, but it was delayed by 24 hours after heavy rain caused electrical problems at their stadium in Riyadh.
Ronaldo had to wait the best part of a month for his debut as he had to serve a suspension
This only added to the suspense of whether Ronaldo would be eligible to feature or not, with Al-Nassr looking at ways to defy his ban that would have risked the club being fined, but in the end he was not named in the squad.
Ronaldo went on to miss their next game as well as he completed his suspension before he finally made his first appearance in Saudi Arabia during an All-Star game against PSG on January 19. Ronaldo scored twice in a 5-4 defeat, and showed few signs of rustiness despite having not played in over a month.
On January 22, 23 days after joining the club, he made his first-team bow for Al-Nassr, and was immediately handed the captain's armband. He was given a huge reception by the home fans, but couldn't get on the scoresheet in a 1-0 win over Ettifaq.
Hitting his stride in FebruaryRonaldo failed to find the net in his first two matches for Al-Nassr, and as we moved into February it looked like he may go three games without a goal when his side were 2-1 down against Al-Fateh late on.
He finally got off the mark in stoppage time, though, converting a late penalty to rescue a point for his team.
That goal appeared to lift a weight off his shoulders, and he rolled back the years to score all four goals in a 4-0 win over Al-Wehda the following week.
Ronaldo showed his class in February as he netted eight goals in four matches for his new club
His performances helped Al-Nassr move to the top of the table by the end of the month
After registering two assists in his next game, he bagged a hat-trick in his final outing in February to finish the month with eight goals in four appearances.
Having made a slow start to his
