The newly expanded FIFA Club World Cup is now less than a month away, with 32 teams from across the globe getting ready to compete for the title of the best club side in the world.
This new format of the competition sees the number of sides competing jump from seven last time out in December 2023, with some of the planet’s biggest clubs and most dazzling names set to feature in the USA from next month.
One team that did not qualify was Al Nassr, which means Cristiano Ronaldo, who remains a global sporting icon, will not be featuring.
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The Portuguese star’s absence was a blow to the marketing men, who would have liked nothing better than to hype up a potential final meeting between Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, whose Inter Miami side did make the cut.
Despite the presence of Ronaldo, who is the Saudi Pro League’s leading scorer with 23 goals this season, Al Nassr are well off the pace, sitting fourth in the table, 13 points behind leaders Al-Ittihad.
Al Nassr’s disappointing season is likely to mean key changes are made this summer, according to Marca, who claim this could mean Ronaldo is considering the club, with his contract due to expire on June 30.
The report also claims that an unnamed Brazilian club has launched an audacious bid to sign the former Manchester United man, who was ranked at no.4 on FourFourTwo’s list of the sport’s greatest-ever players.
This potential move would then ‘open up the possibility’ of Ronaldo playing in this summer’s Club World Cup.
A total of four Brazilian sides have qualified for this summer’s tournament, with Palmeiras, Flamengo, Fluminense and Botafogo all making the cut owing to their respective Copa Libertadores victories over the past four years.
Marca add that Ronaldo is ‘tempted’ by the proposal as it would give the 40-year-old another opportunity to feature on the world stage.
In FourFourTwo’s opinion, the Club World Cup is a tournament driven by money, so finding a last-minute place for one of the globe’s most marketable figures to feature would be very on brand for the initiative.
