The nail-biting encounter between Al-Nassr and PSG was mostly highlighted as the final showdown between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. And in terms of delivering according to the expectations, this match over-delivered. The match however wasn’t only the GOAT’s face-off; it was also a reunion between Sergio Ramos and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The King Fahd stadium was up for an entertaining match-up between two exciting teams. And boy it delivered every bit of entertainment the soccer fans could have expected. The match turned out to be a goal fest with a total of 9 goals combined between the participating teams.
The visitors drew the first blood inside just three minutes of the match through Leo Messi. The star-studded PSG team looked extremely confident against the Riyadh All-Stars. Ronaldo equalized from the spot to even the score. Again late in the first half, Ronaldo equalized again with a 2-2 scoreline in the first half. Early in the second half Sergio Ramos himself got a goal. The match ended in a 5-4 scoreline for PSG.
Cristiano Ronaldo to Sergio Ramos: “Dude, take off your earring 😅” pic.twitter.com/S4UgP85Wap
— Vega (@Vega12991453) January 19, 2023
Ronaldo and Ramos met at the tunnel for the mandatory pre-match greet. When they had a reuniting hug the Portuguese realized that Ramos still has his earring on. Soccer players are prohibited from wearing jewelry during a match, as it can hurt someone.
As soon as Ronaldo pointed that out they both burst into laughter. However, on the pitch, they competed like opponents. Although Ronaldo scored twice with his brilliance, Ramos didn’t leave an inch of the field for his former teammate. The Spaniard put his foot through on the Riyadh All Stars’ number 7 multiple times in his naturally aggressive nature.
Why was Sergio Ramos not happy with Cristiano Ronaldo?
Cristiano Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos got very well with each other and it looked very obvious. But it wasn’t the case after the Portuguese left Real Madrid for Juventus. Cristiano shared a very close bond with Sergio Ramos during his Real Madrid tenure. Ramos himself had all the respect for the Portuguese goal machine.
Cristiano Ronaldo arrived at the Spanish capital in 2009, for a record transfer fee. Sergio Ramos was at the club since 2005, and from the early days, they became very good friends. The duo went on to play 9 fantastic seasons together, remarkably winning the Champions League four times. Ronaldo won four Ballons d’Or in those years, becoming the deadliest striker in history. He finally left in 2018 as a 33-year-old for a mammoth $108 million.
However, later that year, Luka Modric won the Ballon d’Or after an exceptional domestic and international campaign. Ronaldo was the runner-up that year and ended up not congratulating his former teammate. According to a MARCA report, the Real Madrid players including Ramos were very unhappy with Ronaldo’s behavior. The reports further said that Ramos and Ronaldo weren’t even talking to each other for some time.
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Since then, Sergio Ramos has also left Real Madrid for PSG. Whatever problems they had in past years, yesterday it looked like they have overcome those well and truly. Sergio Ramos even shared a picture on his Instagram with Ronaldo.