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The arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr came with its fair share of controversy, one of which involved the immediate departure of striker Vincent Aboubakar.
The Cameronian striker had his contract with Al-Nassr terminated as the club looked to accommodate the Portuguese superstar's arrival in the squad.
Reports revealed that Al-Nassr's decision was made to maintain compliance with Saudi league rules, which state that a club can't register more than eight foreign players.
The 30-year-old striker eventually joined Turkish club Beşiktaş. However, there have been concerns as to whether sacking Aboubakar was the right decision by the Riyadh-based club.
Meanwhile, Al-Nassr midfielder Jaloliddin Masharipov recently made an interesting claim regarding the controversy. In an interview, as seen in SportsUz, the 29-year-old Uzbekistan international revealed that Aboubakar could have stayed if he wanted to.
"If Vincent wanted to stay, he would have stayed. He just left to avoid being benched. I think he took it for granted."
He played down rumors linking Ronaldo's arrival with Aboubakar's departure last month, saying the Cameroonian himself made the decision to leave.
"When Cristiano arrived, he felt that he would fall into the background. Therefore he left Al-Nassr as soon as a good offer came in. I don't think there was any scandalous situation.”
Meanwhile, Ronaldo has struggled to adapt to life at Al-Nassr. He has so far managed to score just one goal in his first three appearances for the Saudi outfit.
His only goal so far came during a 2-2 draw against Al-Fateh after he stepped up to neatly convert a last-minute penalty.
Aboubakar is also yet to open his goal-scoring account for Besiktas. He has so far made four appearances in the Turkish Super Lig.
Ronaldo's Al-Nassr teammate has lavished praises on the Portuguese veteran
Luiz Gustavo is full of admiration and support for his new teammate Cristiano Ronaldo after he secured a record-breaking deal to join Al-Nassr.
The Portuguese joined Al-Nassr in January on a two-year deal that would see him earn around €200 million per year.
Ronaldo has so far made three appearances for his new side and has found the back of the net once. He also bagged a brace during a friendly game against Paris Saint-Germain last month.
Speaking about his performance, teammate Gustavo believes that the 38-year-old superstar has a lot to offer Al-Nassr. As seen in the Mirror, he said:
"Cristiano was created for challenges and he always succeeds in them. And everyone here is waiting to see what he will present.
He continued:
"He has already scored his first goal and he therefore got rid of the pressure.”
