Cristiano Ronaldo’s expected move to Arabian football club Al Nassr for a record sum of 173 million pounds has made the headlines after being first reported by Spanish daily Marta. The deal which is on the verge of completion will be the most lucrative deal for a football player in history, overtaking Frenchman Kylian Mbappe’s three-year agreement worth 547 million pounds with Paris Saint Germain.

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The deal will pay Ronaldo a sum of 500 million pounds over a period of two and a half years. As a major part of the deal has been pitched in by sponsors, the issue of image rights will have to be discussed. In simple terms, the deal would pay the football legend more than 6 times the amount he earned annually while playing for United from 2021 August. It has also been reported that Ronaldo will be compensated with the agreed amount he was not paid by United for leaving the club before the agreement ended.

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After Ronaldo’s explosive interview with Piers Morgan that was aired on November 16 and 17, Manchester United decided to let go of the star on November 22. Since then, Ronaldo has been a free agent while undertaking national duties for Portugal at the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar. Portugal became the second side in the World Cup to make it to the knockouts and will face one of the qualifiers from Group G.

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Things have turned out bright for Asia, which is exclusively hosting the World Cup for the first time after 2002. While Asian football regulars Japan defeated four-time champions Germany, minnows Saudi Arabia stunned the world by edging World number three and cup favourites Argentina 2-1. Ronaldo’s presence in an Asian club is expected to act as a fillip to this positive football trend in the continent.