After his transfer to Besiktas, Vincent Aboubakar opened up about the claims that he left Al-Nassr because of Cristiano Ronaldo. The Cameroonian soccer star said on the French television channel Canal+:
“With the arrival of Cristiano, I made it clear to the coach before his arrival that I already wanted to leave. When Ronaldo arrived, a foreign player had to be released.”
“Ronaldo asked me to stay and the club wanted me to stay at least until the end of the season but I really wanted to leave. The club wanted me to stay and were ready to pay my salary until the end of the season.”
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VINCENT ABOUBAKAR:
“Cristiano asked me to stay and the club wanted me to stay at least until the end of the season, but I wanted to leave. Before Cristiano arrived at Al Nassr, I made it clear to the coach that I really wanted to leave.” pic.twitter.com/e2YaGCt0lb
— CristianoXtra (@CristianoXtra_) February 7, 2023
Turkish SuperLig side Besiktas swooped in to sign Aboubakar in the winter transfer window after his contract was terminated at the Saudi Pro League side. Besiktas signed him as a replacement for Wout Weghorst. The Dutch striker cut short his loan in Turkey and joined Manchester United.
Ronaldo, on the other hand, is now the main man up front for Al-Nassr. He has started a few games for the club and has been given the captain’s armband. In their latest league encounter with Al Fateh, Ronaldo netted his first goal for the club. He scored from a penalty in stoppage time to equalize and share the spoils. Al-Nassr currently leads the league table.
Vincent Aboubakar’s contract was reportedly terminated due to the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr
Earlier, going by the trend at that time, Ronaldo was being shown in a negative light. It was speculated that Aboubakar was being sacrificed for Ronaldo against his wishes. According to a report by RMC Sport, “The 30-year-old striker had his contract terminated by the Saudi club to comply with the maximum number of eight foreign players set by the Saudi federation.”
A non-Saudi Arabian Al-Nassr player had to leave to make way for the Portuguese icon. A specific rule in the Saudi league stated that only eight foreign players are allowed to be registered. Therefore, to register Ronaldo, it was reported that Aboubakar was going to make way.
🤙🏿 WHAT A STORY?! 🤙🏿
Vincent Aboubakar is officially a Black Eagle again!#WelcomeAboubakar pic.twitter.com/6CHw4bi1gh
— The Black Eagles (@BesiktasEnglish) January 21, 2023
So, he did, however, according to the latest reports, it was by his own will. Besiktas announced the signing of the Cameroonian international on January 21, 2023, on their Twitter account.
This is, however, his third stint at Besiktas. He first joined the club on loan from Porto in August 2016. He helped the Black Eagles retain their title in 2016/17. Aboubakar returned to Besiktas in the 2020/21 season, this time as a permanent move. He helped them win the league again that season.
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