Crowds greet Ronaldo and his teammates with tears in Tehran
In a historical scene that cities rarely witness while hosting delegations from competing clubs, the delegation of the Saudi Al-Nasr team received a crowd that astonished the world, during its arrival in the Iranian capital, Tehran, in preparation for meeting Persepolis in the AFC Champions League competition.
Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo, captain of Al-Nasr, received a warm reception in the first visit of a Saudi team to Iran since 2016.
While the roads and squares were decorated with welcome banners including pictures of Ronaldo and Sadio Mane days before the Saudi club arrived, the streets were crowded with fans who raised welcome banners and pictures of Ronaldo with the arrival of the delegation to Iran after the return of relations between the two countries.
The crowds invaded the Victory Mission Residence Hotel, despite attempts by security personnel to prevent them. The fans chanted Ronaldo’s name inside the hotel, with children and women carrying pictures of the Portuguese national team captain.
Al-Nasr’s account on the “X” platform, formerly known in the media as “Twitter,” published several pictures of a gift that Peruzzi gave to Ronaldo, which was a luxurious hand-made Iranian carpet.
The fans wrote: “Mr. Cristiano Ronaldo, welcome to Iran.” A gift of appreciation, an original hand-woven piece of art made by Iranian artists to commemorate your presence in Iran, on behalf of Peruzzi fans.”
The children wore Al-Nasr and Portugal shirts bearing Ronaldo’s number, and the fans carried out the famous celebration for the former Real Madrid player.
Tasnim Agency published a video of fans crying after watching Ronaldo.
Al-Nasr players had arrived in Tehran amid tight security guard from the “elite unit” specialized in presidential visits, according to what was indicated by the Iranian sports website “Varzesh 3”, while the presence of a star like Ronaldo is considered rare in the Asian country.
For its part, Iranian newspapers and news websites were interested in the arrival of the Saudi Al-Nasr team to the capital, Tehran, and the “Iran” newspaper wrote: “My love, come to Iran,” with a picture of the Senegalese Sadio Mane, the star of Al-Nasr Club, in a use of the common expression on social networking sites, which is usually used. As tourism advertising.
As for the newspaper “Ettelaat”, it published pictures of the Tehran Municipality banner welcoming Ronaldo and the Saudi Al-Nasr team, which filled the streets of Tehran, especially those through which the Saudi team’s bus passed, heading from the airport to the hotel.
Iranians surround the Al-Nasr bus before it arrives at the hotel (Al-Nasr Club)
The Iranian newspaper Etemad, in turn, published a report on the difficulty of the task facing the sons of Persepolis coach Yahya Gulmohammadi in this difficult group of the Champions League, reminding the Persepolis players that they eliminated Al-Nasr from the semi-finals of the tournament 3 years ago. The report confirmed that the Al-Nasr team’s lineup has changed a lot from what it was in the 2020 edition, as Al-Nasr signed many international stars.
Etemad newspaper also conducted an interview with Mahmoud Shafi, one of the former stars of the Persepolis team, who confirmed that Al-Nasr is a complete team fit to compete in the Champions League. However, he also confirmed that Persepolis is an ancient team with a long history of appearing in the AFC Champions League finals and winning the local championship. in Iran.
Shafi stressed the difficulty of the match, and that victory was more likely due to the presence of so many international players among its ranks. Shafi pointed out that it cannot be said that Cristiano Ronaldo has aged, praising the player’s physical abilities, which he described as giving him the same ability to play at the highest levels, no matter how old he gets. Shafi ruled out that Al-Nasr was thinking of taking revenge for the 2020 defeat, suggesting that Al-Nasr players were thinking more professionally.
Thousands gathered to watch international stars at the Victory Mission (Al-Nasr Club)
As for the widely circulated newspaper, Hamshahri, it devoted a large number of pages and articles to covering the Al-Nasr team’s visit to the Iranian capital. Initially, the newspaper published a picture of the renovation work that affected the “Azadi” stadium, which will host the match, as officials repaired the dilapidated asphalt of the stadium’s outer area and the entry corridors for athletes and teams. Under the title: “Thank God, Ronaldo is coming to Iran to solve the problems of Azadi Stadium.”
The newspaper also published a large number of photos and video clips that monitor the arrival of the Victory Mission to Tehran Airport and then its movement inside the Iranian capital, and the interaction of the fans with the stars of the yellow team, especially the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo.
Hamshahri Online conducted an interview with the veteran Persepolis player, Hamid Reza Ali Asghari, who stressed that his team should not be considered a loser of the match just because Cristiano Ronaldo was on the other side of the field.
Regarding the fact that Al-Nasr scored 21 goals in its last 5 matches, Asghari added: “In any case, Ronaldo’s age has increased, and in my opinion, Sadio Mane is a more dangerous player, and he came to Saudi Arabia while the major European teams were looking for him, but Al-Nassr knows that Persepolis is not like… The Saudi teams he faced and scored 21 goals in.”
Asgari said: “There has been a big change in football in this country. Keep in mind that the Saudis have done a very good job in recent years, and they are always a respectable opponent. In my opinion, Persepolis’ strength is the cohesion of the team. It is better for Persepolis players to maintain their focus and not be affected.” With names.”
The Hamshahri Online website indicated that a big record awaits Cristiano Ronaldo if only his team avoids defeat in Tuesday’s match, as the Portuguese star will then reach 1,000 matches without defeat in his football career, as the player has now reached 999 matches, with 775 wins. And 224 draws.
Hamshahri Online ended its coverage of Ronaldo’s visit to Iran with a topic about an Iranian artist with disabilities, Fatemeh Hamami, who painted a picture of Cristiano Ronaldo when she learned that he was coming to Iran, hoping that she would be able to present this painting to Ronaldo.
2023-09-18 20:26:11
#Riyad #Mahrez #sake #AlAhly
