Featured Image Credit: Globe Soccer Awards / Getty
Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Saudi Pro League, Ligue 1
Ryan Smart
Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Saudi Pro League, Ligue 1
Cristiano Ronaldo has claimed that the Saudi Pro League is better than Ligue 1 - and says that every club in France's top flight is 'finished' except Paris Saint-Germain.
Ronaldo is currently playing in Saudi Arabia with Al Nassr, and was named the world's top goalscorer among selected top European leagues for 2023.
The 39-year-old has scored eight goals in his last five games for club and country, meaning he entered the Christmas period in top form.
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Ronaldo has been welcomed as a special guest at the Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai on Friday afternoon - a ceremony which celebrates achievements in football.
The Manchester United and Real Madrid legend is the most successful footballer at the awards since they were inaugurated in 2013, with six awards to his name.
During this year's ceremony, he was invited on stage to discuss a range of different subjects.
In the discussion, he spoke about the quality of the Saudi Pro League - and made a brutal claim about the standard of France's Ligue 1 in comparison.
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Check out what he said below.
He claimed: "The French league? Of course [it is worse]. I don't say that because I play there [in Saudi Arabia]. They [people] should go there and play there, to see. To run in 38, 39, 40 degrees and sprint a few times, just to see how they're going to be. Don't believe in my words - go there and see.
"Only in France is PSG, the rest is finished.
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"It's my opinion. In France it is only PSG, sorry. The other ones compete, okay. But PSG is the strongest - nobody competes with them.
"They have better players, they are the club with more money. This is a fact, and I don't understand why people are so surprised."
The 'better players' comment may well have been an indirect reference to both Lionel Messi and PSG, with the Argentinian playing alongside world superstars such as Neymar and Kylian Mbappe during his time at the Parc des Princes.
After his interview, Ronaldo was crowned as the winner of the Best Middle East Player award for 2024.
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The award was introduced last year, with Ronaldo being its inaugural holder.
A number of other prizes are due to be handed out on Friday, including the Fans' Favourite Player of the Year - also currently held by Ronaldo - the Best Men's and Women's Player of the Year, and the Best Men's and Women's Club awards.