Cristiano Ronaldo was dropped from the Al Nassr squad on Monday, not due to a fitness issue but for disciplinary reasons. Ronaldo is currently on strike at the club.
Unprecedented scenes have sparked in the Saudi Pro League as star footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, the world’s highest-earning footballer, has gone on a strike and dropped from Al Nassr’s squad. Ronaldo was nowhere to be seen on Monday as Al Nassr defeated Al Riyadh 1-0 in a league match, with Sadio Mane scoring the only goal.
Now there’s nothing wrong with Ronaldo, fitness-wise. He is perfectly fit, but the reason he wasn’t a part of the Al Nassr playing XI or the squad is that the 40-year-old football star is on a strike at the club. Ronaldo refused to play for the club in a protest against Al Nassr.
Why is Ronaldo on a strike at Al Nassr?
Ronaldo’s biggest and only complaint is that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which owns Al Nassr and Al Hilal are favouring the latter in the title race. Ronaldo feels Al Nassr have not been allowed to reinforce their squad in the January transfer window by PIF, seriously hampering their chances to win the Saudi Pro League 2025-26 title.
Ronaldo, who joined Al Nassr in January 2023 and earns over $230 million a year at the club, has not won the Saudi Pro League title yet. Al Nassr are currently second in the Saudi Pro League title, just one point behind Al Hilal, who are on 47 points from 19 games.
🚨 𝗡𝗘𝗪: Jorge Jesus, Simão, and Jose Semedo could all resign from Al Nassr within hours.
Cristiano Ronaldo is still refusing to play while the PIF undermines his club and provides favoritism to Al Hilal.
Total silence from Ronaldo, but his message is loud and clear: he will… pic.twitter.com/5KI8Z6nkyI
— TCR. (@TeamCRonaldo) February 2, 2026
But Al Hilal has managed to reinforce their squads with multiple players in the transfer window. They signed former Real Madrid star Karim Benzema on Monday night from Al Ittihad after the French footballer
had salary issues at his former club. They have also signed former Arsenal defender Pablo Mari from Fiorentina for $2 million, and are reportedly close to acquiring French U21 international Saimon Bouabré from Neom for a reported fee of $33 million.
18-year-old Rennes striker Kader Meite could also soon join Al Hilal for a $30 million fee.
Al Nassr, meanwhile, has only signed 21-year-old Iraqi midfielder Haydeer Abdulkareem, while the authority of sporting director Simão Coutinho and CEO Jose Semedo have been “frozen” by the board of directors.
Ronaldo is angry with Al Nassr bosses
According to Portuguese outlet A Bola, Ronaldo is enraged by the club’s lack of ambition and transfer situation. An angry Ronaldo has refused to play for Al Nassr. He is currently training alone after disagreeing with the top brass of Al Nassr.
The BBC reports that Ronaldo is particularly angry about Al Hilal bringing in Benzema, further strengthening their squad. It has to be noted that Ronaldo was also linked with a move to Al Hilal before he signed a new deal at Al Nassr in 2025.
🚨💣 BREAKING: Karim Benzema signs in as new Al Hilal player from Al Ittihad, HERE WE GO! 🔵🇸🇦
Former Ballon d’Or leaves Al Ittihad to join Inzaghi’s project at Al Hilal with immediate effect.
Benzema agreed on all terms tonight. 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/eJdcEteWHk
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 2, 2026
“He’s just competitive and doesn’t like other clubs getting stronger”, a source familiar with the situation told the BBC.
Nonetheless, Ronaldo has been in top form in the Saudi Pro League, scoring 17 goals so far, and being only 39 short of a record 1000-career goal target. But will he play for Al Nassr again?
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