Cristiano Ronaldo receives special cake from Al-Nassr teammates as they celebrate 'GOAT' winning 3 awards at Globe Soccer Awards 2023

Al-Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo was recently surprised with a special cake by his club teammates after the veteran forward notched up three honors at the Globe Soccer Awards 2023.

Earlier this Friday (January 19), the 38-year-old bagged three awards at the Globe Soccer Awards 2023 event in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. He won the Maradona Award, the Best Middle East Player award, and also the Fans' Favourite Player of the Year recognition.

On Sunday (January 21), Al-Nassr players celebrated the former Real Madrid and Manchester United man's recent individual triumphs. They handed the superstar a cake, with a special message saying:

"Awards keep following the GOAT"

Ronaldo, who bagged 54 goals in 59 combined matches for Al-Nassr and Portugal in 2023, will next face Shanghai Shenhua on January 24 before taking on Zheijang four days later. He will then likely be in action in a friendly against Lionel Messi-led Inter Miami on February 1.

Al-Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo pays tribute to Diego Maradona after lifting special award

Speaking to Portuguese daily Record, Al-Nassr attacker Cristiano Ronaldo opened up on his admiration for Argentina legend Diego Maradona after recently lifting the Maradona Award. He elaborated:

"As I said at the gala, these are two awards that I don't have in my museum. So it makes me very happy, especially Maradona, who unfortunately is no longer with us and who was a player I always admired."

Ronaldo also expressed his gratitude to the match-going fans, saying:

"And also, as I always say, that the fans are also very important because fans go to the stadiums to see us and pay for tickets to watch football. [When] I used to play in Europe, I had the opportunity to win this award a few times, but in the Middle East, this is the first time. I feel happy, knowing that the season I had was very good and it's always good to receive awards of this magnitude."

Asked if he is surprised with his fine form for his club, the star replied:

"I had an excellent pre-season at Al-Nassr, with the technical team led by coach Luís Castro, who was important in my motivation to have an excellent season. It surprised me in that regard, but it didn't surprise me that I won. Because I know that I still have a lot of potential to give and I know that I can score many goals for Al-Nassr and Portugal. So it was a spectacular year on a personal level."

Ronaldo, who joined the Saudi Pro League side on a free switch last January, has scored 30 goals in 31 matches across competitions for his club so far this season. He has contributed 11 assists as well.

A five-time Ballon d'Or award winner, Ronaldo will be hoping to win his first league title with Al-Nassr this season. However, Al-Hilal are currently seven points ahead of second-placed Al-Alami after 19 games.