Cristiano Ronaldo reflects on first season with Al-Nassr, new life in Saudi Arabia

RIYADH: Cristiano Ronaldo has shared his thoughts on playing and living in Saudi Arabia in his first full interview since joining Al-Nassr Football Club.

The interview, which was published on the Saudi Pro League’s social media channels, comes at the end of a campaign in which Ronaldo’s Riyadh club claimed second place following a closely fought battle for the title with new champions Al-Ittihad.

The Portuguese superstar stressed the positives and building toward next season despite his disappointment at missing out on the title.

He said: “Well, my expectation (at the start) was a little bit different. To be honest I expected to win something this year, but it is not always the way we think or the way we want; sometimes we need passion, consistency, and persistence to achieve the best things.

“So, I still believe that next year we will improve a lot. Let us say in the last five or six months the team has improved a lot. In the league, all the teams improved.

“It takes time sometimes, but if you believe and you think it is your goal, I think everything is possible.

“I expected to win something this year, but we didn’t, but next year I am really positive and confident that things will change, and we will go in a better way. So, let us believe that and work on that.”

Ronaldo joined the club in January and has featured extensively in the SPL, making a significant contribution to the club’s performances with 14 goals in 16 matches.

He added: “The league is very good but I think we have many, many opportunities to still grow. The league is competitive, we have very good teams, very good Arab players.

“But they need to improve the infrastructure a little bit more, even the referees. The VAR system should be a little