Piers Morgan explains why Cristiano Ronaldo is 'loving' Saudi Arabia move with Al Nassr

Piers Morgan has revealed Cristiano Ronaldo is 'loving' his experience with Al Nassr after swapping Manchester United and the Premier League for football in Saudi Arabia.

Ronaldo's explosive Talk TV interview with Morgan upset United in October, with the striker claiming manager Erik ten Hag had 'betrayed' him.

Soon after, the player and club severed ties and his contract was terminating, paving the way for the 37-year-old to move as a free agent.

He then sealed a mega-money move to the Saudi league with Al Nassr, becoming the world's best ever paid footballer in the process, although the transfer hasn't been without its controversy.

Morgan is known to be close to Ronaldo and was recently asked in an interview if he's had contract with the Portugese superstar since the move.

"Is he happy? Definitely," Morgan told Tatler. "I’ve swapped a few texts with him, and he’s absolutely loving it, on and off the pitch."

Ronaldo is yet to score for Al Nassr in two appearances and has come under fire from some for claiming that a host of Champions League clubs were interested in his signature – only to seal a switch to the Middle East instead.

Morgan admitted Ronaldo would have liked a Champions League move, but staunchly defended his friend.

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"Thanks to the fall-out from our interview, Ronaldo signed the biggest transfer deal in football history, and is now the world’s highest-paid athlete, at the age of 37," he added.

"He’s also doing what he’s done throughout his career, and which for me gives him the edge over Messi, and that’s challenge himself in a new country, and new league, at a time when football in the Middle East is really taking off, as we saw at the Qatar World Cup where Morocco reached the semi-finals and Saudi Arabia beat the eventual winners, Messi’s Argentina.

"Ideally, I think he’d have preferred to play for another top club in the Champions League for a year or two, but Al Nassr made him a staggering offer, and I think the fresh challenge of raising the profile of football in a new region of the world, at the twilight of his incredible career, really appealed to him."

Read more: Cristiano Ronaldo's reaction to being filmed by everyone in a restaurant

Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Al Nassr, Manchester United

Dominic Booth

Dominic is a freelance journalist for SportBible who also works for the Evening Standard and Sporting News and was formerly a Manchester United writer and editor for the MEN. He's a big Test cricket fan and Arctic Monkeys obsessive.

@DomBooth19