The Saudi Pro League has picked Manchester United’s midfielder Bruno Fernandes and Liverpool’s forward Mohamed Salah as potential ambassadors for the league as replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo.
There are discussions about Ronaldo’s possible departure from the club.
Ronaldo, who is now 41 years old, has been the most famous player in the Saudi league after he came to the Kingdom in December 2022 on a free transfer after spending over 20 years playing in Europe with four different teams.
In 2025, Ronaldo signed a big and profitable new contract with Al-Nassr until the next summer.
Because of his comment about the club owners PIF not supporting the team enough during the recent transfer window compared to other clubs, Ronaldo might leave this summer.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has a £43 million clause in his new contract that will become active at the end of the season.
In case he uses that option, a source from the Saudi league told The i Paper, as reported by Sport Bible, that Salah or Fernandes would be great choices for the league:
“Salah and Fernandes would be ideal choices, especially Salah, because he would draw in an Arab audience as a Muslim.
“Either of those newcomers, plus that young talent, would be really big for us.”
Ronaldo did not play in the Knights of Najd’s 1-0 victory in the Saudi Pro League against Al-Riyadh on Monday, and also missed the 2-0 home win against Al-Ittihad on Friday, which has led to doubts about his place in the team.
Both Salah and Fernandes are important players for their teams. Salah has been playing for Liverpool since the summer of 2017 and has scored more than 250 goals in all competitions.
Fernandes, who is the captain of United, has been playing for Old Trafford since January 2020 and has scored over 100 goals.
