Saudi Professional League 2023/2024

[Shadiq]

It's unfair for people to keep heaping blame on Ronaldo for the outcome of their first game. The Al Nassr star is a player, and there are ten others. The pressure on Ronaldo increased because of the hat trick scored by Messi. Some football pundits went as far as saying Ronaldo will destroy his reputation with his poor performance in the World Cup.

There are still two more games to play. And I hope Ronaldo will be able to make tangible contributions in the game against Uzbekistan. I just feel sorry for him because he is facing so much pressure because of criticisms and high expectations from fans.

Those who understand the game will not blame the poor performance in the first match. If you analyze it in general, you will see how poor Portugal's ball supply from midfield was. If the midfield performs poorly and Ronaldo does not receive the ball properly, it is definitely difficult for him to score goals. I do not want to compare Ronaldo with Messi. Both of them have different positions on the field and different styles of play. Even Ronaldo and Messi's teammates are different. Although Messi is considered an idol by his teammates, that is not seen among Ronaldo's teammates. The game is never played by one person, but 11 people have to play together. However, it must be accepted that Ronaldo is not capable of performing as he used to, but one player cannot be responsible for the team's bad performance.

[PremiumcryptoHub]

I am already scared for Portugal with the performance I saw from them this last game. It does not speak well of them as a team which is up to doing something great in this tournament. The World Cup is too important to begin this way and I hope they’ve learnt from the last match they played against the DR Congo played at the Houston stadium. I am not pleased with the way they handled their match and the Congolese guys became more confident when they realized Portugal was weaker than they thought in the beginning.

It must be admitted that Portugal performance and style of play in this match were very disappointing, they didn’t look like a solid team, something was off about them. Even Cristiano Ronaldo barely touched the ball, and they didn’t mount any meaningful attacks, they spent most of their time in midfield, just passing the ball around aimlessly. At first, i wasn’t worried because Portugal managed to take a 1-0 lead and control possession, but when Congo managed to equalize, i immediately had a bad feeling, and the match ended in a draw.

Before the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, many of us thought that the Portugal team would play much more aggressively from the group stage because you notice that this team has most of the star players. But football fans may be disappointed by this team's performance against the DR Congo team because the Portugal team could not perform exceptionally. To be honest we were expecting Cristiano Ronaldo to score a goal in this match, but the player was ineffective in his opening match of this World Cup. However in the upcoming game, maybe this player will be committed to scoring goals and it seems to us in the upcoming matches, they will show their strength in this World Cup by playing artistic football against Uzbekistan and Colombia.

[Slow death]

Before the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, many of us thought that the Portugal team would play much more aggressively from the group stage because you notice that this team has most of the star players.

I have consistently said that the biggest problem with the Portuguese national team is not the players, it's not Cristiano Ronaldo as some TV commentators keep saying, it's nothing like that. The biggest problem with the Portuguese national team is the coach. If they had hired a coach with many achievements and a lot of experience in World Cup games

he would know how to better manage all the players on the Portuguese national team and would be able to assemble a much stronger and more cohesive squad that would bring very good results. But unfortunately, the Portuguese, or rather the president of the Portuguese Football Federation, chose a coach based on his own whim, and we are seeing this failure.

[SquallLeonhart]

Ronaldo has been out of European competitions for a while, but I am pretty sure that if he were to come back now, like lets assume that (not that it would ever happen) Real Madrid sells Vini today, and gets Ronaldo for striker, and Mbappe put on left wing like naturally. He would still be able to contribute at least 20 goals a year. So the problem with Portugal and all of this is not because of him, he is fine.

It's about him being mentally checked out from every game, and just wants 1000 goals and nothing else matters now to him anymore. Plus, his fans are so crazy online that, Portugal teammates are getting a ton of hate, how could you love a teammate, when his fans are cursing you and your entire family everyday? You would start to hate him, even though he is not the one writing those.

[Gallar]

It is whether that or the national football federation should bring a top coach to build a well mentally connected team and physically fit in order to play solidly and stay as challenging as having many top players.
Cristiano Ronaldo absence in Manchester United or Real Madrid didn't make totally failure teams. They might dropped bad in quality but it was mostly due to many mistakes done by the management or limitations imposed by owners.
Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr might be a success story and the same goes for Portugal but his absence should in no way lower the performance of any team.

Of course when a player leaves, it is necessary for them to replace him otherwise the team will no longer be good, and this can be done by buying a player of the same or higher level than the one who left, there are certainly many opportunities around, this is necessary to have replacements and find other champions.

Yes, the point is, a team must be agile and have a strong mindset. Relying solely on one or two players is clearly not going to be good in the long run. Even players who were previously excellent will inevitably experience declines in performance, as they are human beings. Therefore, a football team must continually seek out talented players who can support and replace existing players.

This is the case in Portugal and Al Nasr. Even if Ronaldo retires,, they must not despair and not allow their performance to suffer. There are still many talented players out there who can be recruited. Therefore, player turnover must be continuous if a team is to thrive. Otherwise, the team will undoubtedly lose out to other teams. The point is, you can't rely solely on one player, because a football team must be able to excel in all areas.

[Crytohillss]

It is whether that or the national football federation should bring a top coach to build a well mentally connected team and physically fit in order to play solidly and stay as challenging as having many top players.
Cristiano Ronaldo absence in Manchester United or Real Madrid didn't make totally failure teams. They might dropped bad in quality but it was mostly due to many mistakes done by the management or limitations imposed by owners.
Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr might be a success story and the same goes for Portugal but his absence should in no way lower the performance of any team.

Of course when a player leaves, it is necessary for them to replace him otherwise the team will no longer be good, and this can be done by buying a player of the same or higher level than the one who left, there are certainly many opportunities around, this is necessary to have replacements and find other champions.

Yes, the point is, a team must be agile and have a strong mindset. Relying solely on one or two players is clearly not going to be good in the long run. Even players who were previously excellent will inevitably experience declines in performance, as they are human beings. Therefore, a football team must continually seek out talented players who can support and replace existing players.

This is the case in Portugal and Al Nasr. Even if Ronaldo retires,, they must not despair and not allow their performance to suffer. There are still many talented players out there who can be recruited. Therefore, player turnover must be continuous if a team is to thrive. Otherwise, the team will undoubtedly lose out to other teams. The point is, you can't rely solely on one player, because a football team must be able to excel in all areas.

Football is a club sports and no club or national team can depend on one player forever no matter how great that player is so smart clubs are always preparing for the future by developing young talented and streni the squad, Ronaldo and AI Nassr but long term success comes from having a Bali team with quality players in every position. The best clubs are the one's that keeps building developing new talent and preparing for the future.

[tygeade]

This part got my attention the most, without been biased, between Ronaldo and Messi for their respective teams, Messi is treated with more respect in his team than Ronaldo is has been with his own Portugal team. In Argentina, if you look at their setup and system of play, they all play for Messi, the team wants to win for Messi, this alone will mean he will have less burden on his shoulder as a result, he will play his normal game and perform to his maximum capacity. Ronaldo in Portugal isn't the same, Bruno acts as if his in constant competition with Ronaldo, they are all bunch of individual players who want to only play for themselves. Cancelo doesn't like Ronaldo and his acted and said it. They forget the team got all the attention and popularity because of Ronaldo. Argentina has less star players compared to Portugal right now but they play as a unit and let's assume these two meets, the way Argentina will rubbish Portugal with all their star players, it will be so shameful to behold.

The difference is that, when they do that for Messi, he scores a hattrick as we have seen, when you do that for Ronaldo, he just misses shots and blames it on other people. Also if you spend a whole career trying to be the one to score, and be mad that someone else scored, and demand goal is counted towards you and not happy that your team scored if it's not, and even a hairline touch should be counted as yours and not your teammates, your teammates will start to hate you for who you are.

Not meaning Ronaldo is a bad player, it's just that Messi wants the team to score, and he does his best to win, while Ronaldo looks like he only cares for himself. You may deny this, you may ignore this, but players can see it.

[Dump3er]

This part got my attention the most, without been biased, between Ronaldo and Messi for their respective teams, Messi is treated with more respect in his team than Ronaldo is has been with his own Portugal team. In Argentina, if you look at their setup and system of play, they all play for Messi, the team wants to win for Messi, this alone will mean he will have less burden on his shoulder as a result, he will play his normal game and perform to his maximum capacity. Ronaldo in Portugal isn't the same, Bruno acts as if his in constant competition with Ronaldo, they are all bunch of individual players who want to only play for themselves. Cancelo doesn't like Ronaldo and his acted and said it. They forget the team got all the attention and popularity because of Ronaldo. Argentina has less star players compared to Portugal right now but they play as a unit and let's assume these two meets, the way Argentina will rubbish Portugal with all their star players, it will be so shameful to behold.

The difference is that, when they do that for Messi, he scores a hattrick as we have seen, when you do that for Ronaldo, he just misses shots and blames it on other people. Also if you spend a whole career trying to be the one to score, and be mad that someone else scored, and demand goal is counted towards you and not happy that your team scored if it's not, and even a hairline touch should be counted as yours and not your teammates, your teammates will start to hate you for who you are.

Not meaning Ronaldo is a bad player, it's just that Messi wants the team to score, and he does his best to win, while Ronaldo looks like he only cares for himself. You may deny this, you may ignore this, but players can see it.

And what Pjcr7 also misses is that it is true the team plays for Messi, but he neglects the fact that Messi plays for the team. In Portgual Ronaldo never plays for the team. He never runs back and defends, he never plays the optimal pass if a player on his team is in the better position. This is why it works in Argentina. If hypothetically Messi would play like Ronaldo, he would be gone from the national team. They would hate him. But Messi is not a diva, he wants the team to succeed while Ronaldo wants Ronaldo to succeed.

[$weetne$$]

Football is a club sports and no club or national team can depend on one player forever no matter how great that player is so smart clubs are always preparing for the future by developing young talented and streni the squad, Ronaldo and AI Nassr but long term success comes from having a Bali team with quality players in every position. The best clubs are the one's that keeps building developing new talent and preparing for the future.

When a team is dedicated or committed to grooming newer and younger talents it helps them prepare for a future that will see to their success.  Because older players eventually will leave and this has nothing to do with how well or good they have been with the team, they will get to that point  they will retire or they will have their contract expires and they will have to leave.

For long term success,  younger players  are the most reliable to achieve that with,  only  if they are groomed well to still be on the team.

[snipie]

Not meaning Ronaldo is a bad player, it's just that Messi wants the team to score, and he does his best to win, while Ronaldo looks like he only cares for himself. You may deny this, you may ignore this, but players can see it.

This is known for a long time. When Messi plays, he helps his teammates to score all the time while trying also to score whenever his position allows him to do it. At the opposite, Cristiano Ronaldo is quite selfish and try to beat records. He definitely helps his teammates but he most of the time tries to try his luck even when it is hard to do something from that spot.
I want to return to Saudi Arabia performance in this World Cup. They were supposed to do way better regarding how good the Saudi Pro League is, but what happened showed that there were no improvement in their national football team.

[M47AK16]

This part got my attention the most, without been biased, between Ronaldo and Messi for their respective teams, Messi is treated with more respect in his team than Ronaldo is has been with his own Portugal team. In Argentina, if you look at their setup and system of play, they all play for Messi, the team wants to win for Messi, this alone will mean he will have less burden on his shoulder as a result, he will play his normal game and perform to his maximum capacity. Ronaldo in Portugal isn't the same, Bruno acts as if his in constant competition with Ronaldo, they are all bunch of individual players who want to only play for themselves. Cancelo doesn't like Ronaldo and his acted and said it. They forget the team got all the attention and popularity because of Ronaldo. Argentina has less star players compared to Portugal right now but they play as a unit and let's assume these two meets, the way Argentina will rubbish Portugal with all their star players, it will be so shameful to behold.

The difference is that, when they do that for Messi, he scores a hattrick as we have seen, when you do that for Ronaldo, he just misses shots and blames it on other people. Also if you spend a whole career trying to be the one to score, and be mad that someone else scored, and demand goal is counted towards you and not happy that your team scored if it's not, and even a hairline touch should be counted as yours and not your teammates, your teammates will start to hate you for who you are.

Not meaning Ronaldo is a bad player, it's just that Messi wants the team to score, and he does his best to win, while Ronaldo looks like he only cares for himself. You may deny this, you may ignore this, but players can see it.

I would say the biggest problem is the fans, not the player himself. Ronaldo may look a bit selfish that is true, but most of it is just fans from both sides acting like Mess is god or Ronaldo is god and that's the problem. And other players get impacted by this, their instagrams are filled with hatred, we have seen that with Neves very recently after the game, so we know that this is not really a unique situation, it happens all the time.

And players are of course going to play accordingly, or hate a player accordingly. Not like Ronaldo came out and calmed the public down and told them to back off Neves, so fans could see that as confirmation to go on.

[Pjcr7]

This part got my attention the most, without been biased, between Ronaldo and Messi for their respective teams, Messi is treated with more respect in his team than Ronaldo is has been with his own Portugal team. In Argentina, if you look at their setup and system of play, they all play for Messi, the team wants to win for Messi, this alone will mean he will have less burden on his shoulder as a result, he will play his normal game and perform to his maximum capacity. Ronaldo in Portugal isn't the same, Bruno acts as if his in constant competition with Ronaldo, they are all bunch of individual players who want to only play for themselves. Cancelo doesn't like Ronaldo and his acted and said it. They forget the team got all the attention and popularity because of Ronaldo. Argentina has less star players compared to Portugal right now but they play as a unit and let's assume these two meets, the way Argentina will rubbish Portugal with all their star players, it will be so shameful to behold.

The difference is that, when they do that for Messi, he scores a hattrick as we have seen, when you do that for Ronaldo, he just misses shots and blames it on other people. Also if you spend a whole career trying to be the one to score, and be mad that someone else scored, and demand goal is counted towards you and not happy that your team scored if it's not, and even a hairline touch should be counted as yours and not your teammates, your teammates will start to hate you for who you are.

Not meaning Ronaldo is a bad player, it's just that Messi wants the team to score, and he does his best to win, while Ronaldo looks like he only cares for himself. You may deny this, you may ignore this, but players can see it.

This is the most silly propaganda I have seen today so far across all socials. You started with he scores hat tricks when they do it for him and Ronaldo wastes his own chances, I smiled and wondered even if you don't watch matches you also don't follow up on statistics? Do you realise this is the very first time Messi is scoring a a hat trick in a world cup stage, something Ronaldo did almost ten years ago against Spain. Do you want to talk about their continental statistics as well, Ronaldo has the numbers and has been delivering his team all these years. The only place Messi has a better scoring statistics than Ronaldo is friendlies. You should do well to get your facts correct before pointing fingers.

Furthermore more to address the frustrations, imagine when the chances you create happens to be squandered. You are quick to talk about Ronaldo Vs Fernandez when he claimed the ball touched his head meanwhile it was his hairline. But you never spoke against the Ronaldo Vs Nani incident when Ronaldo packed the Spanish defender Pique moved his way up and disgraced Casilla with the ball going into the empty net and from nowhere Nani put his head on the ball even when he knew he was on the offside position, that goal was cancelled. How come you didn't bring it up as you brought up the Ronaldo and Fernandez incident?

[Volgastallion]

What a disaster start for the saudi national team in this world cup, the other day i read something like this team is complete diferent compared to the one of the world cup 2022 with only 3 players remaining from that team. My question about this one is.... this is because of a complete change with more youth players, or most of them were old guys and the renewed are not the good of what were the past one players.

[jaberwock]

A new rumour is emerging, saying Ronaldo may actually play all the way until 2034 so he could play in Saudi Arabian world cup. That is 8 years, he is currently 41 years old, going into 42, meaning he is going to be at least 49 years old when that happens.

While I am 100% sure that can't happen, and while I feel like this is going to be his last season and not going to play even in the next world cup let alone the world cup after that, there are some rumours about it. Does anyone actually believe it? Like let alone 2034, does anyone really believe he will play in 2034? I think he won't.

[Slow death]

A new rumour is emerging, saying Ronaldo may actually play all the way until 2034 so he could play in Saudi Arabian world cup. That is 8 years, he is currently 41 years old, going into 42, meaning he is going to be at least 49 years old when that happens.

While I am 100% sure that can't happen, and while I feel like this is going to be his last season and not going to play even in the next world cup let alone the world cup after that, there are some rumours about it. Does anyone actually believe it? Like let alone 2034, does anyone really believe he will play in 2034? I think he won't.

After seeing retired boxers return to fighting at a very old age, and reading a few days ago that Ronaldinho Gaúcho returned to playing even at 46 years old, at an Italian club, then seeing Ronaldo's physique, I wouldn't be surprised if he managed to play in the next World Cup, even if he was a substitute and only played in the final stages of the second half. And nowadays it seems that the old standard of professional athletes retiring at a certain age is being altered, or rather, extended to more years.

[Dump3er]

A new rumour is emerging, saying Ronaldo may actually play all the way until 2034 so he could play in Saudi Arabian world cup. That is 8 years, he is currently 41 years old, going into 42, meaning he is going to be at least 49 years old when that happens.

While I am 100% sure that can't happen, and while I feel like this is going to be his last season and not going to play even in the next world cup let alone the world cup after that, there are some rumours about it. Does anyone actually believe it? Like let alone 2034, does anyone really believe he will play in 2034? I think he won't.

After seeing retired boxers return to fighting at a very old age, and reading a few days ago that Ronaldinho Gaúcho returned to playing even at 46 years old, at an Italian club, then seeing Ronaldo's physique, I wouldn't be surprised if he managed to play in the next World Cup, even if he was a substitute and only played in the final stages of the second half. And nowadays it seems that the old standard of professional athletes retiring at a certain age is being altered, or rather, extended to more years.

This will all depend on the performance at this World Cup. If he fails to score, I can only imagine what the uproar will be in Portugal and not only among the fans, but also among the new team members. There will be a point when a new coach or existing coach risks too much covering Ronaldo any further. I don't know whether it is fair or not and I can't see him in training, but all that counts for him is goals and if he scores them, nobody can argue against him. Otherwise he will always be the center of attention and this can be harmful to the team as a whole.

Ronaldinho isn't playing full-time for that new club as far as I know. His role is very different from what people think. It is not like he is going to play 38 matches in Serie A as a serious player.

Now that Messi scored another one, the pressure for Ronaldo is going up. Messi is giving answers to pressure nonstop despite the missed penalty and Ronaldo has to now, he can't fail again this match.

[ITExpert]

It's unfair for people to keep heaping blame on Ronaldo for the outcome of their first game. The Al Nassr star is a player, and there are ten others. The pressure on Ronaldo increased because of the hat trick scored by Messi. Some football pundits went as far as saying Ronaldo will destroy his reputation with his poor performance in the World Cup.

There are still two more games to play. And I hope Ronaldo will be able to make tangible contributions in the game against Uzbekistan. I just feel sorry for him because he is facing so much pressure because of criticisms and high expectations from fans.

I think the very first thing that everybody who supports Ronaldo has need to learn that they cannot blame for anything on a single person in the presence of eleven other players. Because this is not possible that one person can lead the team to the success and the failure as well its always a teamwork. And I think the stage on that Ronaldo is now his low or bad performance cannot destroy his reputation as the world's best player. But this is true that he should try to overcome his weaknesses in that match so he can avoid these next time as a responsible and mature players. Because he is also bearing heavy pressure from his fans which can also distract him or maybe sometimes difficult to handle. And comparison with other great players is not a justice because everyone has their own style of playing and their own way to tackle the things

[Tonimez]

It's unfair for people to keep heaping blame on Ronaldo for the outcome of their first game. The Al Nassr star is a player, and there are ten others. The pressure on Ronaldo increased because of the hat trick scored by Messi. Some football pundits went as far as saying Ronaldo will destroy his reputation with his poor performance in the World Cup.

There are still two more games to play. And I hope Ronaldo will be able to make tangible contributions in the game against Uzbekistan. I just feel sorry for him because he is facing so much pressure because of criticisms and high expectations from fans.

I think the very first thing that everybody who supports Ronaldo has need to learn that they cannot blame for anything on a single person in the presence of eleven other players. Because this is not possible that one person can lead the team to the success and the failure as well its always a teamwork. And I think the stage on that Ronaldo is now his low or bad performance cannot destroy his reputation as the world's best player. But this is true that he should try to overcome his weaknesses in that match so he can avoid these next time as a responsible and mature players. Because he is also bearing heavy pressure from his fans which can also distract him or maybe sometimes difficult to handle. And comparison with other great players is not a justice because everyone has their own style of playing and their own way to tackle the things

I'm concerned about Ronaldo's confidence in this current form because he is a lover of challenges especially when he has other great players performing well. I hope he bounces back and do what he knows how to do best. His next game is against Uzbekistan and he has to score by all means. The fans are running out of patience and even their chances too. He has to score today and also win the game. Messi already lead the top scorers followed by Mbappe and Erling Haaland with 5, 4 and 4 goals.

The pressure is mounted on the team and Roberto Martinez may be forced to put him on the bench if he fails to score today or perhaps sub him off if he doesn't deliver after the first half. Ronaldo has to score to keep the record of scoring in 6 consecutive world cups and also keep his world cup hope alive. Portugal has to top their group at all cost since Columbia is having three points already. If the could win this game, then they will wait to beat Columbia in their last game to top the table.

[Volgastallion]

I know this is not related to the saudi league but, i feel like the emir and other people related to the Saudi family and the state and more being Aramco one of the sponsors of this tournament are gonna put a lot of money into the Cape Verde players pockets to let Saudi Arabia win the game and so they can go into the next phase, dont be surprise if for the next season a few players from Cape Verde ended in this league as a payment.....

[Alex077]

I'm concerned about Ronaldo's confidence in this current form because he is a lover of challenges especially when he has other great players performing well. I hope he bounces back and do what he knows how to do best. His next game is against Uzbekistan and he has to score by all means. The fans are running out of patience and even their chances too. He has to score today and also win the game. Messi already lead the top scorers followed by Mbappe and Erling Haaland with 5, 4 and 4 goals.

This match against Uzbekistan is a perfect opportunity for Ronaldo to return to form. Although they are good in defense but they do not have the quality to stop Portugal attacking depth for full 90 minute

However the real key for Portugal will not be just to sit and hope for goal from Ronaldo. But to get a better ball supply in the box from Bruno Fernandes and the wingers. At this stage of his career Ronaldo relies more on crosses and second balls. If anyone wants to bet on this match it would not be worth taking risk on the idea that Ronaldo alone will carry the whole team. I think it is safe to bet on Portugal -1.5 handicap. Teamwork will decide whether they can top the group or not. It will not depend on the performance of one man