LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-Former Al-Hilal coach Emiliano Diaz criticized Cristiano Ronaldo of Al-Nassr and dismissed parallels to Lionel Messi.
The Portuguese attacker, who was ejected from Manchester United in late 2022 and left Saudi Arabia, finished the year with 14 goals and two assists.
Al-Nassr concluded the season without winning a title despite Ronaldo’s failure to score in 11 of his 19 outings across all competitions. Diaz, who co-worked with father Ramon at third-placed Al-Hilal and temporarily assumed over as interim manager, had first-hand knowledge of the 38-year-old’s accomplishments in the Middle East.
Diaz was scathing in his review of Ronaldo’s first six months at Al-Nassr, telling TyC Sports: “He had a hard time, we [Al-Hilal] faced him and had a good time.” On whether the Portuguese “didn’t even touch the ball” in his appearance against Al-Hilal.
Diaz replied: “He had a hard time. With the big clubs he made no difference. He scored three or four goals for the small clubs and I saw that they were talking about him here. He lost the Kings Cup, he lost the Super Cup and the tournament. In Asia he is not going to compete.”
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As Ronaldo approaches free agency from Paris Saint-Germain and Al-Hilal is prepared to secure a record-breaking deal for the Argentine, Messi, Ronaldo’s longtime rival, may soon join him in the Gulf State.
On comparisons between Ronaldo and his compatriot, Diaz was clear on his views, adding: “No, in no way, not as a footballer. There is no comparison. We have faced him less than three months ago and I went to see Leo at the World Cup. We are talking about light years of comparison. There is no comparison but the numbers support him, he is an animal. But at the level of quality of Leo there is no comparison.”
Ronaldo arrives from Singapore where he had been helping longtime buddy Peter Lim’s charitable endeavors while Messi nears a mega-money move.
He will play for Portugal against Bosnia and Iceland later this month, according to Roberto Martinez.
