Ronaldo says Saudi Pro League now better than MLS, closes door on playing in Europe again

Nassr's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo (R) celebrates scoring his team's first goal during the Saudi Pro League football match between Al-Nassr and Al-Raed at the al-Awwal Park Stadium in the Saudi capital Riyadh on April 28, 2023. (File/AFP)
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  • Portuguese superstar insists that his move to Riyadh has changed dynamic of football transfers for many players
  • The 38-year-old was speaking after Al-Nassr鈥檚 pre-season friendly match against Celta Vigo

Cristiano Ronaldo has declared that the Saudi Pro League is superior to Major League Soccer in an interview with Portuguese publication A Bola on Monday.

The pronouncement came only days after Ronaldo鈥檚 long-time rival Lionel Messi completed his move to the David Beckham-led club Inter Miami in the MLS.

The Portuguese superstar, who joined Al-Nassr at the end of last year, also revealed he has no intention of playing for a European club again.

鈥淚 won鈥檛 return to European football, you can forget about it 鈥� the door is completely closed for my return.鈥�

The 38-year-old was speaking after Al-Nassr鈥檚 5-0 defeat to LaLiga side Celta Vigo in a pre-season friendly in Lisbon.

鈥淚鈥檓 38 years old, and also Europe has lost a lot of quality. The only one that is one of the best is the Premier League, it鈥檚 way ahead of all the other leagues from my point of view.

鈥淭he Spanish league lost its level, the Portuguese one is not a top one, the German has also lost a lot of quality. The USA? No, the Saudi championship is much better than the USA.鈥�

Ronaldo鈥檚 move to Riyadh has opened the door for an influx of some of the world鈥檚 highest profile players into the Roshn Saudi League.

Since the privatization of the Kingdom鈥檚 top clubs earlier this summer, the likes of Karim Benzema, Roberto Firmino, N鈥橤olo Kante, Reuben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and other stars have followed Ronaldo鈥檚 path to Saudi.

鈥淚鈥檓 100 percent sure I won鈥檛 return to any European club,鈥� Ronaldo said. 鈥淚 opened the way to (the) Saudi league last January, and now all the players are coming here.鈥�

鈥淚n one year, more and more top players will come to Saudi,鈥� he added. 鈥淚n a year the Saudi league will overtake the Turkish league and Dutch league.鈥�