The good thing about Cristiano Ronaldo playing in your league is that he is one of the most famous footballers ever and when he scores a great goal or reaches 1,000 (just 21 to go), many people watch. The bad thing about Cristiano Ronaldo playing in your league is that when something negative happens and he is involved, just as many people will watch and listen. Global attention is something that the big European leagues have had for years but it is something the Saudi Pro League, which has spent billions in search of achieving a similar stature, needs to get used to.
On Sunday 13 September, Ronaldo wrote to his 680 million Instagram followers to discuss the events of Saturday evening. That was when Al-Taawoun supporters were coming to terms with a 6-0 home thrashing by Al-Hilal, whose £150m-plus forward line, Ollie Watkins and Gabriel Martinelli, got five between them. Fair to say that some handled it better than others as what followed was in the worst possible taste.
At the end, what seemed to be a small number of fans saw Al-Hilal’s Rúben Neves in the centre circle and started chanting the name of his former Portugal and Wolves teammate Diogo Jota, who tragically died in a car accident in July 2025. Neves, who has a tattoo of the Liverpool star, was visibly upset and made a gesture which clearly said to those supporters that “God is watching you”. He also said to Saudi reporters after the game: “I hope they don’t go to pray afterwards.” Ronaldo then weighed in.
People who behave like this should never be allowed to enter a stadium again.” Al-Hilal made an official complaint. Ayman al-Hotami, one of Al-Hilal’s best-known fans, says: “I found the chants hard to believe but those responsible were few in number and very young. Al-Hilal’s fanbase completely condemn the chants and demanded an apology regarding the actions of individuals in their stands.
We appreciate the club’s response in condemning this isolated incident, which represents neither the club nor our society.” Away from home in small stadiums with low attendances, often the case when the big teams play outside Jeddah and Riyadh, the chants of a few can carry far. More than once, Ronaldo has heard the name of a certain Argentinian star coming his way and reacted badly. This, though, was on a completely different level.
The well-known Saudi broadcaster Waleed al-Faraj says: “To shout ‘Messi’ at Ronaldo is acceptable within the context of the rivalry between them, but to chant the name of his deceased teammate Jota at Neves is an inappropriate act. How can you play on people’s grief like this? You should have some humanity.” The Saudi legend Sami al-Jaber, who played at four World Cups and had a short spell in England with Wolves, sent a message to Neves: “Rúben, your presence in Saudi football means a great deal to us.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
