Ligue 1 broke its silence and responded in savage fashion after Manchester United legend Cristiano Ronaldo ruthlessly criticised the top five European league.
Ronaldo has been in fine goalscoring form for Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr and the five-time Ballon d’Or winner ended 2023 as the top scorer in the world.
The 38-year-old scored an impressive 54 times in 59 matches for club and country in 2023, putting him ahead of Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.
Ronaldo has currently scored 24 times in 25 appearances across all competitions this season with Al Nassr, who he signed for after his exit from Old Trafford in 2022.
The Portuguese superstar previously claimed that he had received offers from around the world before he inked his lucrative deal with Al Nassr.
However, Ronaldo was criticised over his move to the Saudi Pro League and the quality of Saudi Arabia’s top-flight league has come under intense scrutiny.
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Ronaldo defends Saudi Pro League
Ronaldo attended the Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai on Friday, but the Al Nassr star missed out on the Best Men’s Player of the Year award to Manchester City’s Haaland.
However, the United legend did win the Fans’ Player of the Year, the Maradona Award and Best Middle East Player award during the event at Atlantis, The Palm.
Ronaldo defended the Saudi Pro League at the Globe Soccer Awards by claiming that it is “more competitive” than Ligue 1 and is “better” than the French league.
“Saudi League is not [worse] than Ligue 1,” he said.
“Saudi Pro League is more competitive than Ligue 1, I can say that after one year spent there.
“We are better than [the] French league already now.”
Ligue 1 responds to Ronaldo’s criticism
Ligue 1 is considered one of Europe’s top five leagues alongside the Premier League in England, the Bundesliga in Germany, La Liga in Spain and Serie A in Italy.
However, France’s top-flight league has often been met with criticism over its domestic standard amid Paris Saint-Germain’s dominance over Ligue 1.
Ligue 1 on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, didn’t pass up the opportunity to hit back at Ronaldo over his scathing criticism of the French league.
The Ligue 1 X account simply responded by posting a photo of PSG star Kylian Mbappe checking out Ronaldo’s face from the Riyadh All-Star XI clash in 2023.
Ronaldo was involved in a crunching collision with former Real Madrid teammate Keylor Navas in PSG’s friendly match with the All-Star XI in Riyadh.
Mbappe was pictured putting his hand on Ronaldo’s neck, with the former United superstar’s face featuring a hefty bruise at the time.
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