Al Ittihad win Saudi league as Ronaldo ends season at Al Nassr without silverware

28.05.2023 - 07:39 thenationalnews.com

Cristiano Ronaldo’s hopes of winning the Saudi Pro League title with Al Nassr were extinguished on Saturday night when Al Ittihad were crowned champions for the first time in 14 years.

Requiring one victory from their final two matches, the Jeddah club triumphed 3-0 at Al Fayha to secure the top-flight crown with one round to spare.

Nassr, second for the past couple of months and just about keeping pace with their title rivals, could only draw 1-1 at Al Ettifaq, confirming the Riyadh side will finish the season as runners-up.

The 2022/23 campaign concludes on Tuesday. Ronaldo, 38, was signed in late December in a hugely lucrative deal, with the expectation he would help fire Nassr to a first league title in four years.

Football Al Nassr win as Cristiano Ronaldo Bayern Munich Manchester Portugal Saudi Arabia Jeddah Riyadh

Karim Benzema wants to leave a “lasting legacy” and deliver trophies at new club Al Ittihad, with the striker saying his Muslim faith was a significant factor in his decision to move to Saudi Arabia.

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World Cup-winning French midfielder N'Golo Kante has signed a three-year deal with Saudi Arabia's Al Ittihad, a club source told AFP on Wednesday – a day after Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema also joined the Pro League champions.

Benzema's deal raises questions about future of Saudi league top scorer

The arrival of Ballon d'Or winner Karim Benzema at Saudi Arabia champions Al-Ittihad may not be all positive as the deal puts the future of Saudi Pro League top scorer Abderrazak Hamdallah in doubt.

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Karim Benzema agrees three-year deal to join Saudi Pro League champions Al Ittihad

Ballon d'Or holder Karim Benzema has agreed to join Saudi Pro League champions Al Ittihad on an initial three-year deal.

Karim Benzema Signs For Saudi Arabia's Al-Ittihad: Club Source

Real Madrid's Ballon d'Or winner Karim Benzema has signed for Saudi Arabia's Al-Ittihad for three years starting next season, a source in the Jeddah-based club told AFP on Tuesday. "Benzema has signed a contract for his transfer to Al-Ittihad for a three-year period starting next season," the source said. The announcement comes days after Real Madrid announced that the 35-year-old was leaving the club after 14 seasons, the day after coach Carlo Ancelotti had said there was "no doubt" Benzema's future was in the Spanish capital. Benzema is in line to join Cristiano Ronaldo in the Gulf kingdom after the Portuguese five-time world player of the year moved to Al Nassr from Manchester United following last year's World Cup.