"We talked about everything, as if he were my cousin or brother" - Argentine attacker opens up on pre-season experience with Cristiano Ronaldo

Argentine attacker Matias Soule has opened up on the first pre-season he spent with Cristiano Ronaldo during their time together at Juventus.

Soule joined the Old Lady in January 2020 from Velez Sarsfield's youth side for a fee of €2.5 million. He would have spent two summers at the club where Ronaldo was also on Juve's books.

The Portugal icon left the Allianz Stadium on the penultimate day of the 2021 summer transfer window. Soule, who was 16 when he joined the Italian giants, would not have shared the training ground many times with the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.

Nevertheless, it was enough for Soule to grow close to the former Real Madrid forward and hold heartfelt conversations with him. Speaking about the Al-Nassr superstar, he said in an interview with TNT Sports (h/t InfoBae):

"In the first preseason I did with the first team, he was there. We talk about everything, as if he were my cousin or my brother."

Soule's senior debut for Juventus came in a 2-0 Serie A win over US Salernitana on 30 November 2021 - three months after Cristiano Ronaldo's departure from Turin. The two, of course, never shared the pitch together in a competitive game.

The Argentine teenager has scored once in 19 senior appearances across competitions for Juve, 17 of which have come during this campaign. His rise to prominence in Italy hasn't gone unnoticed back in his homeland.

Soule was called up to the senior Argentina squad for their two 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Brazil in November 2021. He didn't make either of the matchday squads, but he did get to train with the likes of Lionel Messi, Rodrigo De Paul and Lautaro Martinez.

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Cristiano Ronaldo expected to start for Al-Nassr in crucial SPL encounter

Al-Nassr's captain Cristiano Ronaldo.

Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to lead the line for Al-Nassr when they travel to Hofuf to face 15th-placed Al-Adalah in the Saudi Pro League later today (April 4).

The 38-year-old has scored nine goals and provided two assists in 10 games across competitions for his new club since joining them in January. However, he has netted just once in his last three games, which, by his lofty standards, is something he will look to improve upon.

Al-Nassr currently have 49 points from 21 games and trail league leaders and rivals Al-Ittihad by a solitary point with just nine games left in the league season. Rudi Garcia's side will know there is not a lot of room for slip-ups if they want to win the Saudi Pro League for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign.