Cristiano Ronaldo has claimed the Saudi Pro League is better than MLS just two days after Lionel Messi was unveiled as a new Inter Miami player.
Speaking to reporters via the Mirror, the Portuguese soccer legend made the incredible suggestion that Saudi Arabia’s top-flight is better than MLS, with Ronaldo saying: “The Saudi league is much better than MLS. My decision to go to Saudi was 100% crucial for clubs to bring in new top players. It’s a fact.”
Saudi Arabia has been a major talking point in the sport this summer with the country’s Public Investment Fund spending big on superstar players to swap Europe for the Middle East, with the likes of Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante and Ruben Neves all making the switch.
Even Messi was strongly linked with a move to Saudi Arabia, a country the Argentine superstar is controversially sponsored by. However, the 35-year-old opted for a move to MLS with Inter Miami, signing a contract some hundred million dollars short of what the forward would have earned in the Middle East.
However, whilst Saudi Arabia is spending big on superstar names, Ronaldo’s claim that the division is better than MLS is quite ridiculous, to say the least, with the American top-flight tapping into local talent and producing homegrown players who are now playing across the world.
Ronaldo’s MLS claim is weird, to say the least
MLS has made huge strides in the last five years to raise the overall quality of the league to that of a European standard, with clubs now focussing on squads that perform well together rather than having just a handful of superstars amongst borderline amateurs. Which is why Ronaldo’s claim is so odd.
Indeed, take away the big names from the Saudi Pro League and you’re left with a division that is not only trumped by MLS but also worse than some major leagues in Africa and Asia. And whilst the quality will raise soon, the comparisons between the two are night and day.
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