UEFA Considers Invite for Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr to Play in Champions League

FILE – Cristiano Ronaldo, of the Portugal national team, plays the quarterfinal match against Morocco in Doha, Qatar, on December 10, 2022 (AP Photo/Petr David Josek, file) He is 38 years old, and his career has practically closed renewal until 2027. Cristiano Ronaldo’s physical condition attracts the attention of anyone, whether a football fan or not. His son, who will play for his father’s team’s youth team, already told him: “Dad, hold on for a few more years, I want to play with you.” And each time, little CR’s dream is getting closer to reality. He left Real Madrid, wore the Juventus and Manchester United shirts until two summers ago when he decided to go to the Arab league. Since then, his return to European football and specifically to the Champions League has been a real attraction. He is the active player who has won the most Champions Leagues, with a total of five: one with Manchester United (2018) and four with Real Madrid (2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018). But, in addition, his time on the European continent managed to break all the records there were and to be had. He is the player who has scored the most goals in a single tournament (17), the one who has played the most matches in UEFA competitions (197), the top scorer in the Champions League (140), and the one who has played the most matches in this competition. (183), and the one who has scored at least one goal in three different finals of the competition. You may be interested in: The Formula 1 Las Vegas GP does not convince either drivers or fans: forecasts collapse and prices drastically reduceThese numbers are what allow spectators to call for Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to the tournament. Although the Arab league has signed big stars, many of them end up hanging up their boots when their time in Arabia ends, the reality is that in the east Arab football does not have, at least not yet, a great impact. For this reason, the Portuguese’s quality of play is missed or not enjoyed in the same way. However, according to information coming out of Arabia and collected by various international media such as Football Talk or Mediaset Italia, UEFA wants to invite the Al-Nassr (Cristiano’s team) to play in the next edition of the Champions League. The excuse? The return of the Portuguese. As reported by Mediaset Italia, one of the main obstacles is the failure of the Saudi club to comply with financial Fair Play. This is because they have invested a lot of money in attracting stars such as Cristiano Ronald, Kanté or Benzema, as well as now, they have opted for young promises such as Gabri Veiga. Thus, it has also been learned that the Saudi Football Federation has been working since last summer with UEFA to obtain a ‘wild card’ and for one of its clubs to compete in the Champions League. Among them, as a favorite, Al-Nassr, the Portuguese’s current club. You may be interested in: Rublev challenges Alcaraz for the first time in the ATP Finals: ‘denied’ in the Grand Slam and with a Spanish coachA graphic example of what the new one would be like Champions League format for next season. (UEFA)One of the reasons why this possible ‘entry’ of Arabia into the European competition is being taken into account is due to the new format that the Champions League wants to adopt for next season. First of all, there will no longer be 32 teams that will compete in this tournament, but rather it will increase to 36. The format will be similar to the Euroleague basketball tournament. The classification will be the same for the Spanish clubs (the first four classified in LaLiga), the four remaining places will be completed according to several criteria: France wins a direct place in the Champions League, the league champion of the country with the best UEFA coefficient and two more according to the UEFA club coefficient. Thus, these 36 clubs will be divided into four blocks of nine teams (A, B, CYD) distributed from one to 36 according to the UEFA coefficient. The teams will play eight games in the first round, four at home and four away, but with the difference that they will not face each other, but rather the pots will only mark the schedule. A team from block A will play two games with clubs from the same group, but also another two with the rest of the groups (B, C and D). From 96 current matches in the group stage, they will increase to 144. The days in which Champions League matches will be played will also be extended to some Thursdays, with two weeks in which only the European competition will be played. The teams that are eliminated will not be able to rejoin the Europa League, the second European competition.
2023-11-15 08:04:52
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