"80 percent of the fans in attendance are here for him" - Al-Nassr boss Jorge Jesus makes claim about 'global star' Cristiano Ronaldo

Al-Nassr manager Jorge Jesus has hailed Cristiano Ronaldo as an inspiration in the world of football. The 40-year-old is in the twilight of his career, but has shown no signs of slowing down.

The Portuguese superstar has enjoyed tremendous success in his career with Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus. Ronaldo has scored 938 goals from 1281 games across competitions for club and country in his career.

After an underwhelming second coming at Old Trafford, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner moved to Saudi Arabia in 2022 to start a new chapter in his career. The Portuguese superstar's arrival opened the doors of the Middle East to the rest of the world, with multiple iconic names following in his footsteps.

While Cristiano Ronaldo hasn't managed to win the Saudi Pro League since joining Al-Nassr, his presence has propelled the club to global stardom. The Riyadh-based outfit have invested in the likes of Inigo Martinez and Joao Felix this summer, but there's no question that Ronaldo remains their talisman.

Speaking recently, Jesus insisted that 80% fans arrive at the stadium to watch the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.

“Ronaldo is a great example for world football, a 40-year-old player who delivers athletic and physical performance, and let’s not forget that 80% of the fans in attendance are here for Ronaldo, and Al Nassr deserves to have this global star," said Jesus.

Ronaldo set up Joao Felix to score the winner in Al-Nassr's 2-1 win over Al-Ittihad in the Saudi Super Cup semifinal on Tuesday, August 19.

How many goals has Cristiano Ronaldo scored for Al-Nassr to date?

Cristiano Ronaldo has amassed 93 goals and 20 assists from 106 games for Al-Nassr to date. The Portuguese superstar has scored goals for fun all his life and could become the first player to register more than 100 goals for four clubs in history.

Ronaldo famously scored 450 goals from 438 appearances during his nine-season stay with Real Madrid. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner is the LaLiga giants' all-time record goalscorer.

The Portuguese superstar also found the back of the net 145 times for Manchester United over two stints. Ronaldo spent three seasons with Juventus, and plundered 101 goals from 134 games.

He has also registered 138 goals for Portugal and is the highest goalscorer in men's international football. Cristiano Ronaldo signed a new deal with Al-Nassr this summer that keeps him at the club until 2027.

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Deepungsu is a veteran football journalist who has been covering daily transfer roundups and news for over seven years at Sportskeeda. He has written more than 9500 articles for the website, and has garnered close to 21 million reads.

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Inspired by Diego Maradona, Deepungsu played as an attacking midfielder for his local club at subdivision level in his initial years and scored an important goal or two. However, his all-time favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and evidently, he feels Argentina's glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment for fulfilling his long-standing dream. He is also an ardent East Bengal fan.

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Edited by Deepungsu Pandit