Cristiano Ronaldo has finally found his next club.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner joined Al Nassr on Friday, signing a reported two-and-a-half-year contract well over a month after agreeing his acrimonious exit from Manchester United.
News of a lucrative contract offer from the Saudi Pro League club initially broke during the World Cup, with Ronaldo said to be in line to earn £62million (€69.9m) per season.
The 37-year-old, perhaps distracted by the ongoing transfer saga, scored just once in Qatar as Portugal bowed out in the last 16. He now leaves Europe for the first time in his storied career.
Al Nassr are not a renowned name but have enjoyed huge success in Saudi Arabia, so what can Ronaldo expect as he heads to Riyadh?
Who are Al Nassr?
Formed in 1955 and winning the Saudi top flight in their very first season, Al Nassr have nine championships to their name – second only to Al Hilal's 15.
Indeed, Al Nassr and Al Hilal have between them won eight of the past nine Pro League titles, although Al Hilal have taken the most recent three in a row.
The two sides contest the Riyadh derby, with the shares spoiled after a 2-2 draw in the most recent edition on December 26.
Ronaldo's new team-mates
Saudi Arabia's entirely Saudi-based World Cup squad included six Al Nassr players, with Sultan Al Ghannam and Abdulelah Al Amri appearing as substitutes in the shock defeat of Lionel Messi's Argentina.
But the better known players in the Al Nassr squad are likely those from foreign shores.
Cameroon's World Cup star Vincent Aboubakar is joined by former Brazil midfielder Luiz Gustavo, along with three-cap Argentina international Pity Martinez.
Goalkeeper David Ospina has represented Colombia at several World Cups, as well as turning out for Arsenal and Napoli, while Talisca was once a highly rated young forward at Benfica and has scored regularly at Al Nassr.
South Korea's left-back Kim Jin-su is out on loan.
Potential debut date
Ronaldo has already missed the derby with Al Hilal, while Saturday's clash with Al Khaleej will come too soon.
The legendary striker could be in the line-up against Al Tai in Al Nassr's first match of 2023 on Thursday, however.
Al Shabab lead the Pro League by two points ahead of second-placed Al Nassr, with a top-of-the-table clash lined up for January 13.
Do Jamaica's Reggae Boyz have a shot at Copa America glory?
Jamaica warmed up for the 48th edition of the Copa America with back-to-back tame displays in their World Cup qualifiers. A slender 1-0 home win over Dominican Republic was followed up with an insipid 3-2 triumph in Dominica.
It is back to the drawing board for Jamaica head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson, who will be chasing regional bragging rights when the leading 16 nations from the Caribbean as well as North and South America tackle the marquee tournament.
Although his ultimate goal would be for the Reggae Boyz to lift the crown in Florida on 14 July, Jamaica need to navigate themselves out of the group phases before trying to net the top prize.
The 2024 Copa America, hosted in the US from 20 June to 14 July, will feature 10 CONMEBOL members from South America and six invited countries from the North America and Caribbean CONCACAF region.
All eyes will be on Argentina, the defending champions and FIFA World Cup winners, to make it a hat-trick of trophies.
GROUP A | Argentina, Chile, Peru, Chile
Argentina hardly ever concede goals, kick-off their campaign with a star-stunned squad that includes Angel Di Maria, the legendary Lionel Messi and Gonzalo Montiel, whose spot-kick secured the World Cup final win over France.
Argentina beat both Chile (2-1) and Peru (2-0) in 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Yet Peru, who failed to get a shot on target in their November tie with Messi and his mates, had held Argentina to three draws on the spin before their last encounter.
Chile, the Copa America 2016 champions Chile, have been off colour recently under veteran manager Jorge Fossati, and rely on veterans — like Alexis Sanchez and Eduardo Vargas — to add sparks.
Canada should be better than their results suggest under recently appointed head coach Jesse Marsh, who won two caps for the US. He has a plethora of talents — like Alphonso Davies, Tajon Buchanan and Jonathan David — keen to start matches on Canada’s Copa America
Prediction: 1st Argentina, 2nd Canada, 3rd Chile, 4th Peru
GROUP B | Mexico, Ecuador, Venezuela, Jamaica
Mexico went two-and-a-half matches without scoring at the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar. They brought in Jaime “Jimmy” Lozano as interim head coach for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and after winning the top prize he was appointed on a permanent basis. Yet he is surprisingly shelving veterans for the Copa America, instead giving emerging talents an opportunity to showcase their silky skills.
This appears to be a hit and miss group with Ecuador, Jamaica and Venezuela all capable of beating understrength Mexico. However, the Mexicans will benefit from vociferous support in the stadiums.
Ecuador and Venezuela ended in a bore scoreless draw last October. Defensively-minded Ecuador have stars Moises Caicedo, Piero Hincapie and Willian Pacho. Venezuela have hit a purple patch by purring through their World Cup qualifiers.
Jamaica still have failed to produce eye-catching displays under former Iceland head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson, despite their array of English Premier League stars. The Boyz just grind out results, although tend to make good progress in tournaments mainly thanks to reliable shotstopper Andre Blake.
Prediction: 1st Mexico, 2nd Jamaica, 3rd Venezuela, 4th Ecuador
GROUP C | Uruguay, USA, Bolivia, Panama
Uruguay are a real force to be reckoned with, with stunning victories over Argentina and Brazil last year under head coach Marcelo Bielsa. Uruguay are a terrific blend of future stars and seasoned aces with names like Darwin Nunez, Luis Suarez, Manuel Ugarte and Fede Valverde enough to scare opponents.
The US will be under pressure with high expectations from their fans on home soil. Despite being FIFA’s highest-ranked CONCACAF side, there are flaws with defensive uncertainty and an inability to find the back of the net despite having an array of striking power from the likes of Folarin Balogun, Weston McKennie, Ricardo Pepi, Christian Pulisic and Haji Wright.
Panama, narrowly beaten by Mexico in the Gold Cup final, will kick themselves if they fail to reach the quarter-finals. They are brimming with confidence having hit a rich vein of form.
Bolivia are the weakest South American side, with a dreadful World Cup qualifying campaign. They are unlikely to end their 11-match run of failing to win a Copa America group stage match.
Prediction: 1st Uruguay, 2nd Panama, 3rd USA, 4th Bolivia
GROUP D | Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay, Costa Rica
Colombia have become a fantastic side since hiring head coach Nestor Lorenzo last year. They arrive at the Copa Amercia as the only South American nation unbeaten in World Cup qualifiers, including a 2-1 win over Brazil last year. Striker Luis Diaz can be lethal, and will be keen to better his tally of four goals at 2021 Copa America.
Five-time World Cup winners Brazil, having tasted three World Cup qualification defeats on the bounce for their worst run since 2001 are arguably no longer the force they once were. After their 1-0 reversal to Argentina last November, their first-ever home World Cup qualifying loss, Dorival Junior was brought in as head coach. Under Junior’s tutelage they beat England and drew with Spain. Hot-shots Vinicius Junior and 17-year-old wonderkid Endrick are aiming to transform Brazil’s fortunes.
Paraguay will be aiming to shoot down Brazil, but need a solid goalscorer. They are pretty solid defensively, and could be sensational if midfield maestro Miguel Almiron and striker Julio Enciso can replicate their silky skills seen in the English Premier League. Costa Rica face an uphill task to navigate their way to the knockout stages, and there will be big boots to fill between the sticks with iconic keeper Keylor Navas recently announcing his international retirement.
Prediction: 1st Colombia, 2nd Brazil, 3rd Paraguay, 4th Costa Rica
Ronaldo insists Portugal 'deserve to win' Euro 2024
Cristiano Ronaldo says Portugal "deserve to win" Euro 2024, as the skipper issued a rallying cry to the 2016 champions.
Roberto Martinez's side are among the favourites to go all the way in Germany, where they begin their campaign against Czechia on Tuesday, before facing Turkiye and debutants Georgia in Group F.
Portugal were the only nation in qualifying to progress with a 100 per cent record as they won all 10 of their matches, scoring 36 goals and conceding just two, though their impressive form stalled with defeats against Croatia and Slovenia in recent friendlies.
Ronaldo, who netted 10 times in qualifying, is set to become the first player to feature in six editions of the European Championship, in which he already holds the record for most appearances (25) and goals (14).
The 39-year-old is joined by the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Bernardo Silva, Joao Felix, Rafael Leao and Goncalo Ramos in a star-studded squad he feels are more than capable of going all the way and landing a second European crown.
"I believe that this generation deserves to win a competition of this magnitude," said Ronaldo, who captained Portugal to glory eight years ago. "Semi-finals? I hope we can go further.
"We have to go step by step, live in the moment, be calm, work as well as we have until now, believe that it is possible. We know it's a short competition, but the team is ready.
"It's getting off to a good start, which is essential. I feel ready, I've prepared myself for this competition.
"It's my sixth European Championship, it's about enjoying it in the best possible way, playing well and making sure the team can win."
Bayer Leverkusen sign Girona skipper Aleix Garcia
Bayer Leverkusen have completed the signing of Girona captain Aleix Garcia on a five-year deal.
The Spain international is Leverkusen's second arrival during the close season, along with Jeanuel Belocian, who will join the club from Ligue 1 side Rennes on July 1.
Garcia played a key role in the middle of the park during a memorable 2023-24 campaign for Girona, with three goals and six assists in 37 appearances as they finished third in LaLiga and qualified for the Champions League for the first time.
The 26-year-old will link up with compatriot Xabi Alonso, who oversaw an unbeaten domestic season as Leverkusen landed the first Bundesliga title in their history.
Die Werkself also captured the DFB-Pokal and were runners-up to Atalanta in the Europa League, and Garcia hopes he can help the club build on that success.
"I'm very happy to join this big club," he told Leverkusen's official website.
"Like football fans in the whole of Europe, I have admired Bayer Leverkusen for their exceptional achievements in the season just gone. That's why I wanted to join this club, to do big things.
"I've been thrilled that a club like this has done so much to get me. Now, I definitely want to fulfil all the expectations of myself, and make my contribution to this team and the club in continuing to be successful."
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