Cristiano Ronaldo responds with gesture as Al-Raed fans chant Lionel Messi's name in Al-Nassr SPL clash
Cristiano Ronaldo has responded with a gesture towards the Al-Raed fans who were chanting Lionel Messi's name during the match against Al-Nassr. Both clubs faced off on Thursday at the King Abdullah Sports City stadium in the Saudi Pro League.
During the game, the home fans began to chant Ronaldo's long-time rival's name "Lionel Messi", which led to the Portugal legend reacting. He gestured to the fans to increase the tempo, before cupping his hand in his ear, as can be seen in the video below:
Cristiano Ronaldo appeared to be in a good mood on the night, having opened the scoring in the first half. The legendary striker powered his effort into the bottom corner, thanks to an assist from Marcelo Brozovic.
The Al-Nassr superstar was also instrumental in their second goal. He provided the assist to Nawaf Boushai, who also found the bottom corner with a strong effort. Al-Raed, on the other hand, pulled one back through Amir Sayoud in the 76th minute.
At the time of writing, the score was 1-2 in favor of Al-Nassr. If they win, the Knights of Njad will be third place on the Saudi Pro League table, just one point ahead of Al-Qadisiyah, who have not played this weekend. The situation in the league is much worse for Al-Raed, who are sitting in 15th place, just outside the relegation zone.
When Cristiano Ronaldo called for an end to his rivalry with Lionel Messi
Back in 2023, Cristiano Ronaldo declared that his rivalry with Lionel Messi had ended. Like many rival fans in Saudi Arabia, Al-Raed fans have chanted Messi's name as a tactic to distract Ronaldo during matches. However, from the Portuguese legend's viewpoint, the rivalry has "gone".
In a press conference in 2023, he spoke about facing Messi for years and admitted that the rivalry had pushed them to change history. He said (via ESPN):
"I don't see things like that, the rivalry is gone. It was good, spectators liked it. Those who like Cristiano Ronaldo don't have to hate Lionel Messi and vice versa. We've done well, we have changed the history of football. We are respected all over the world, that's the most important thing.
"He's followed his path and I have followed mine, regardless of playing outside of Europe. From what I've seen, he's been doing well and so have I. The legacy lives on, but I don't see the rivalry like that. We shared the stage many times, it was 15 years..."
The duo have won a combined 13 Ballon d'Or awards - an unprecedented feat, with Messi winning eight and Ronaldo winning five. While the Portuguese legend decided to move to Saudi Arabia to finish his career, his Argentine counterpart picked the USA.
