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Former Man U Striker Accuses Cristiano Ronaldo Of Moving To Saudi Arabia For Money
A former Manchester United star recently said that big players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar Jr. are in the Saudi League for the “money”. Read on for details!
Former Nigeria international striker Odion Ighalo has stated that the major reason he and Cristiano Ronaldo play in the Saudi Arabian league is ‘money’. However, some of these celebrities who moved to Saudi Arabia rarely admit that they joined the League for financial benefit, despite earning hundreds and thousands of euros each year.
The Nigerian striker admitted in a recent interview that, unlike the majority, financial motives were the primary incentive for him, Ronaldo, and the bulk of the league's international players to go to Saudi Arabia.
What did Odion Ighalo have to say about players like him and Cristiano Ronaldo?
After Ighalo hinted at retirement recently, as per Soccernet.ng, on Oma TV, he said, “I don’t know when God says stop, but I know it’s not going to be more than three years before I stop. I’ve played for passion all my life; I have to play for money now.”
He added, “I’m not one of those players who will say I am playing football for passion. I am playing for money; at the end of the day, it is about the money.”
Odion further claimed, “See people that are going to Saudi Arabia, big players. Is Ronaldo still playing for passion? He has made more than 100 times what I have in my life, but he still went to Saudi Arabia. You want to tell me that is passion? No, it’s for money.”
The footballer then said, “It’s only when we Africans say it that they will say we like money. But these people don’t care; some of them want to be the highest paid and all that.”
Odion Ighalo made his senior-level football debut in 2015
Ighalo came late to the game. He made his senior debut for Nigeria in a friendly against Uganda in 2015, losing 1-0. After an excellent performance at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia, where he scored five goals in seven games and guided the Eagles to third place, Ighalo announced his retirement from the national team.
The former Manchester United striker returned to the national squad ahead of the country's 2022 World Cup qualifiers, appearing in three matches. His final appearance for the Eagles was against Ghana at the Moshood Abiola National Stadium in Abuja in 2022, after the team failed to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar. He made 37 appearances for Nigeria and scored 16 goals.
While he may be done with the national team, Ighalo continues to produce for his club teams, having scored 12 goals in 26 league games this season. Last season, while at Al-Hilal, the Watford icon scored 21 goals and assisted three times in 34 appearances across all competitions.
Meanwhile, Ighalo, who had previously played for Lyn, Udinese, Granada, Cesena, and Watford, joined Chang Chung Yatai in 2017. He received a reported €200,000 a week at Yatai before going to Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua, where he was paid similarly.
Ighalo spent a year in Shanghai before joining Manchester United on a six-month loan contract. After that, the 34-year-old joined Al Shabbab and began earning €170,000.
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