Cristiano Ronaldo has spoken about the gesture that he made (Image: Getty)
Cristiano Ronaldo has admitted that he was wrong to make an obscene gesture to a group of supporters who were showing their support for Lionel Messi last month. The Al-Nassr star cupped his ears at the group of fans who had been chanting his rival’s name before gesturing towards his nether region.
The incident occurred during his side’s clash with Al-Shabab, in which Al-Nassr secured an important three points with a 3-2 win. The ex-Manchester United star opened the scoring at the Al-Shabab Club Stadium before a second-half brace from Anderson Talisca put the game to bed.
Ronaldo appeared to be infuriated throughout the clash, with chants of ‘Messi, Messi, Messi’ seemingly getting under his skin. The 39-year-old soon let his emotions get the better of him as he moved closer to the cluster of supporters and aimed a gesture towards those fans.
Saudi Pro League chiefs quickly intervened and spoke with Ronaldo about the incident in the following days. He was promptly ordered to pay a fine to the Saudi Football Federation and also to Al-Shabab, with the former Real Madrid star also hit with a one-game ban.
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Cristiano Ronaldo was unhappy with the treatment he was receiving from fans (Image: Getty)
Ronaldo has since spoken out about his actions in Al-Nassr’s pre-match press conference ahead of their clash with Al Ain in the Asian Champions League and apologised for the gesture.
He said: “I will always respect the cultures of all countries, as I have respected to this day, but not always what people see is reality. As I said and I will say again, it is obvious that I will not do it again in this country, but in Europe, it is very normal.
Saudi supporters were chanting the name of Lionel Messi (Image: Getty)
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“Sometimes the passion and excitement of the game leads us to make some mistakes.” Ronaldo then went on to send a fierce warning to Al-Ain, who hold a 1-0 lead on aggregate, by saying: “We will not spare any drop of sweat for the fans of Al Nassr. Tomorrow, remontada!”
Al-Nassr are currently second in the Saudi Pro League and 12 points behind league leaders Al Hilal, who are thriving despite marquee signing Neymar being ruled out with a long-term injury. Ronaldo’s side will need to find their form sooner rather than later, with Al-Ahli on their tails in third place and improving under manager Matthias Jaissle.
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1876015/Cristiano-Ronaldo-Lionel-Messi-Saudi