“He was never a target” - Napoli director dismisses Cristiano Ronaldo transfer links reported earlier

Napoli director Cristiano Giuntoli recently claimed that signing current Al-Nassr superstar Cristiano Ronaldo as a free agent was never in the club's plans. The Portuguese superstar was a free agent after mutually terminating his contract with Manchester United in November last year.

Napoli were touted as one of the top contenders to seal Ronaldo's signature in January after the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Giuntoli, however, claimed that the club never really considered a move due to the financial parameters of a potential move. He said (via Football Italia):

"In all honesty, we never even thought about it. We had some financial parameters we needed to stick to and thought we could surprise people more with a group of lads who were eager to prove themselves.”

He further said (h/t Fabrizio Romano):

“Honestly, we were never close to signing Cristiano Ronaldo — he was never a target for us despite links.”

Ronaldo eventually secured a blockbuster move to Saudi Pro League club Al-Nassr. The superstar forward made his debut in January and has since scored 11 goals and provided two assists in 13 matches across competitions.

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Al-Nassr reacted to Cristiano Ronaldo's angry gesture following the match against Al-Hilal

Al-Nassr suffered a 2-0 defeat in the Riyadh derby against Al-Hilal. Cristiano Ronaldo had a frustrating outing as the Portuguese international saw one goal ruled out and a penalty decision in his team's favor overturned.

A video of Ronaldo grabbing his crotch while leaving the stadium surfaced on social media. Fans could be heard aiming Lionel Messi chants at him at the time.

Al-Alami official Muhammad Al-Enezi, however, claimed that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner had an injury. He said in a statement (via GOAL):

"Ronaldo suffers from an injury. His challenge with Gustavo Cuellar, the Al-Hilal player, started with a blow in a very sensitive area. This is confirmed information. As for the fans’ explanations, they are free to think whatever they want.”

Ronaldo and Al-Alami will return to action on April 24 when they take on Al-Wehda in the King Cup of Champions.