"It's dark inside bro" - Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand trolls Cristiano Ronaldo as latter attends boxing event in Riyadh

Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand aimed a cheeky dig at former Red Devils teammate Cristiano Ronaldo after the latter attended a boxing event in Riyadh.

The Portuguese icon was accompanied by MMA legend Conor McGregor for Saudi Arabia's latest boxing event featuring heavyweights Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder. It was billed as the 'Day of Reckoning' and took place on 23 December at the Kingdon Arena in Riyadh.

Ronaldo moved to the country in January 2023 after having his contract mutually terminated at Manchester United in November last year. Since the 38-year-old attacker's move, several superstars, including Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante, and Neymar, among others, made the move to the Middle East.

On the pitch, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner has been extremely influential to his Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr, notching up 35 goals and 13 assists in 42 appearances. Amazed with the country's progress across sports, Ronaldo wrote on his Instagram, sharing an image of himself:

"Taking sports to a whole new dimension. Unparalleled vision and execution. Can’t stop being amazed."

Ferdinand, who shared the pitch 221 times with Ronaldo at United, couldn't resist taking a sly dig at the Al-Nassr sensation. Pointing out that the former Real Madrid attacker was wearing sunglasses in a dark room, Ferdinand commented:

"It's dark inside bro."

Rio Ferdinand's reaction to Cristiano Ronaldo's post

Playing beside one another, the pair won the Premier League trophy thrice and the UEFA Champions League once, among other honors.

For Ronaldo, up next is a Saudi Pro League clash against Al-Ittihad on Tuesday (December 26). The Riyadh-based side are second in the league — 10 points behind leaders Al-Hilal with a game in hand.

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Pablo Sarabia settles GOAT debate between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi (via Getty Images)

Spain international Pablo Sarabia weighed in on the everlasting GOAT debate between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. He spent time observing Ronaldo at the Santiago Bernabeu during his youth football days.

Before joining Wolverhampton Wanderers from Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in January this year, Sarabia shared the pitch eight times with Messi for the French giants. Picking the Al-Nassr superstar over Messi, Sarabia told talkSPORT (via Goal):

"It's a very difficult question. It's Cristiano because his mindset is totally incredible. It's very hard."

Reserving praise for the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner now playing at Inter Miami, he added:

"With Messi, everyone knows his capacity, the ability to score, to find the solution."

Messi and Ronaldo have won 13 Ballon d'Or awards between them, with the Argentine superstar leading that particular race 8-5. The 36-year-old is a three-time UEFA Champions League winner and 10-time La Liga champion.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo has gotten his hands on the Champions League trophy five times and won league titles in three separate countries.