SUMMARY
- Pity Martinez, Cristiano's teammate at Al-Nassr, joins the list of teammates who have come forward at multiple occasions to depict how grateful and modest CR7 is.
- The Argentine attacking midfielder considers playing with CR7 as one of the biggest achievements of his career.
Cristiano Ronaldo is one of the most misunderstood players of all time. The media has often painted an extremely false image of the 38-year-old. While CR7 has always tried to keep his feet on the ground and excel in his profession, certain sections of the media have constantly been at odds with the Portuguese captain. They have branded Cristiano as ‘arrogant’ and ‘selfish.’
However, many of his teammates have come forward at different times, to depict how grateful and modest CR7 is. Pity Martinez, Cristiano’s teammate at Al-Nassr is the latest name in that list.
Even though Pity could only have limited opportunities to play with the 5-time Ballon d’Or winner, he was utterly impressed with Cristiano’s behavior. The Argentine attacking midfielder considers playing with CR7 as one of the biggest achievements of his career.
🚨Pity Martinez: When Cristiano Ronaldo arrived at Al Nassr I was sure that he was someone different from what was said about him in the media. He showed me and the team that he was a great person. It was a pleasure to play with Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nasr Club because he is… pic.twitter.com/AGO1FHK2iO
— CristianoXtra (@CristianoXtra_) January 13, 2024
Pity described how the media is ruining Cristiano’s image through false narratives. He said, “When Cristiano Ronaldo arrived at Al Nassr I was sure that he was someone different from what was said about him in the media. He showed me and the team that he was a great person.”
Cristiano’s humbleness has reportedly, moved the Al-Nassr team. CR7’s teammates were baffled to find out that he wasn’t anywhere near how the media had described him.
Piny goes on to say, “It was a pleasure to play with Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr Club because he is truly great and that memory will remain with me throughout my career.”
Pity Martinez felt grateful for the opportunity to play with the former Real Madrid player at Al-Nassr. The 30-year-old left the Saudi club to join the Argentine River Plate ahead of the 23/24 season.
Cristiano Ronaldo has inspired budding soccer players in Saudi Arabia
The 38-year-old’s pull has been very helpful for the Saudi Pro League. CR7’s move to Al-Nassr in early 2023, triggered a set of chain reactions that saw an exodus of well-known players from various leagues to Saudi. The long list includes influential soccer players like Karim Benzema, N’golo Kante, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, etc. Many of them have mentioned Cristiano Ronaldo as the prime reason for their respective Saudi moves.
🚨Jordan Henderson: “I started watching Saudi League matches after the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo. Especially in the summer since Ronaldo joined, that have come to make the league better and try to improve it, and hopefully that can continue. Since Cristiano come here,… pic.twitter.com/fgxppMcWfD
— CristianoXtra (@CristianoXtra_) December 19, 2023
Cristiano’s move to Saudi has revived the soccer culture in the Middle Eastern country. Spanish sports newspaper Marca has done an excellent job in examining Cristiano’s effects on the young soccer players in Saudi Arabia. Marca interviewed many budding soccer players who told the newspaper about their love for CR7.
Farid aged 28, described how much he adored Cristiano Ronaldo even though he supports Al-Hilal, considered to be the rivals of Al-Nassr. The boy said, “I’ve been an Al-Hilal fan since I was a child, but my favorite player is Cristiano. I think the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo is good for the whole country and also to show Asia to the world.”
Another boy named, Muhammad aged 16, meticulously talked about how Cristiano’s move has changed the perception around the Saudi League. He said, “Everyone in Europe and America is talking about Al-Nassr and the Saudi Arabian league after the signing of Cristiano. It’s a great opportunity for the world to get to know us.”
It is safe to say that, Cristiano Ronaldo has been a big role model for the young talents, in addition to being the Saudi League’s biggest ambassadors. The Saudi League’s growth in the future would be an interesting topic for coverage.