Ceferin Says Saudi Arabia Are Making a Mistake : A number of big-name footballers have already made the move to the Saudi Pro League, including former Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo and Ballon d’Or holder Karim Benzema and star names such as Chelsea’s N’Golo Kante and former Sergio Busquets have also been linked with moves to the Middle East.
And now UEFA chief Aleksander Ceferin has attempted to play down concerns about Saudi spending power threatening the biggest European clubs.
Cristiano Ronaldo ‘s mega-money mid-season move was just one of a number of high-profile transfers to the Saudi Pro League. Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr will have plenty of competition next term, with Karim Benzema joining Al-Ittihad after confirming his departure from Real Madrid.
It isn’t ending there, with Al-Hilal courting Ruben Neves and the likes of N’Golo Kante and Hakim Ziyech also linked with moves to the league. Ceferin, however, is not anticipating a player exodus, and indeed has questioned the approach of the big-spending teams.
“No, no, no,” Ceferin told NOS (via ESPN ) when quizzed on the possibility of an exodus. “I think that it’s mainly a mistake for Saudi Arabian football.
“Why is that a problem for them? Because they should invest in academies, they should bring coaches, and they should develop their own players.”
“The system of buying the players that almost ended their career is not the system that develops football,” he added. “It was a similar mistake in China when they all brought players who are at the end of their career.”
“The biggest difference I have found in Saudi is obviously the heat and adapting schedules to train later in the day when it is cooler,” Ronaldo told LiveScore.
“But I have really gotten used to that now. The fans here have been incredible to me, welcoming me, and those that follow me to continue on this amazing journey.”
Spending power in Saudi Arabia was already high, as evidenced by the huge salary paid to Ronaldo.
However, the step up in transfer interest in European-based stars comes against the backdrop of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund taking stakes in four of the country’s biggest clubs.
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