Saudi star sends farewell message as he leaves Cristiano Ronaldo-led Al-Nassr and joins SPL rivals

Saudi Arabia midfielder Mukhtar Ali has sent a farewell message to Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr, as he has joined rival Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq. The 27-year-old signed a four-year contract with the Dammam-based side on Wednesday (January 29).

Ali joined Al-Nassr in 2019 from Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem. During his stay with the Knights of Najd, he enjoyed two loan spells away from the club, playing for Al-Tai and Al-Fateh between 2022 and 2024.

This season, he featured sparingly for the side, garnering a mere 190 minutes of action in 11 appearances across competitions before his transfer to Al-Etiffaq. Al-Nassr confirmed the transfer on their official X handle, writing:

"#AlNassr and #Ettifaq have reached an agreement regarding an immediate transfer of Mukhtar Ali. Thank you, Mukhtar Ali! Best of luck in your next chapter 💛."

Ali also took to his Instagram stories to thank the club. He reposted the club's farewell photo of himself and captioned the post:

"Thank you Al-Nassr. Good luck for the future."

Screenshot of Mukhtar Ali's farewell post - (Instagram/@mukhtarali)

Mukhtar Ali made 53 appearances for the Knights of Najd, recording a goal and an assist. He played alongside Cristiano Ronaldo nine times, though the pair had no joint goal contributions.

Al-Nassr are fourth on the Saudi Pro League table with 35 points from 17 matches. Al-Ettifaq, meanwhile, are in the 12th position with 19 points after the same number of games.

Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr set to fill vacant foreign player slot with new striker signing

Al-Nassr are set to rope in a new striker to join Cristiano Ronaldo in the club's attacking department. As per journalist Fabrizio Romnao, the Saudi Pro League side have their eyes on either Aston Villa's Jhon Duran or Bayer Leverkusen's Victor Boniface.

Stefano Pioli's side are looking to reinforce their squad after letting Brazilian striker Anderson Talisca join Turkish side Fenerbahce this January. The move has left a vacant spot in the club's 10 available slots for foreign players.

A move for either of the forwards mentioned above would be a huge addition to the Ronaldo-led side. It would boost their squad depth and provide the manager with options regarding deployment in the final third.

Also, it would bolster Al-Nassr's chances of landing a silverware this season. They have yet to win a major trophy since Cristiano Ronaldo's arrival in 2023.