Home Football Messi and Ronaldo Rivalry Reignites with Inter Miami’s Announcement of 2 Matches in Saudi Arabia

Messi and Ronaldo Rivalry Reignites with Inter Miami’s Announcement of 2 Matches in Saudi Arabia

Football — 12/20/2023

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will finally meet in Saudi Arabia.

Inter Miami confirmed on Monday that they will participate in the Riyadh Season Cup – something that was announced by Saudi Arabian officials on November 21. Inter Miami said the reports at the time were inaccurate.

Messi vs. Ronaldo match on Feb. 1 headlines Inter Miami preseason Saudi Arabia tour

Inter Miami will face Al-Hilal on January 29 and Al Nassr – Ronaldo’s team – on February 1. These two clubs lead the Saudi Pro League and Ronaldo is the top scorer of that tournament.

Inter Miami sporting director Chris Henderson said: “These matches will present important tests for our team, which will benefit us as we enter the new season” . “We are happy that our team has the opportunity to face teams of equal quality to Al-Hilal and Al Nassr.”

 

Messi and Ronaldo have faced off 35 times between matches for club and country, Inter Miami said, with Messi’s team winning 16, Ronaldo’s team winning 10 and the two sides drawing on the remaining nine occasions. Messi has 21 goals and 12 assists in those matches; Ronaldo has 20 goals and 1 assist.

 

Messi has promoted tourism in Saudi Arabia and in May was suspended by former club Paris Saint-Germain for making an unauthorized trip to the country. He also played in this year’s Riyadh Season Cup when PSG was a guest.

Saudi Arabia has made a major bid to become a major player in world football by signing some of the sport’s biggest players amid allegations of money laundering in the sport. sports . But that could not lure Messi to the oil-rich kingdom when he left PSG at the end of last season, as the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner chose to move to Major League Soccer.

Cristiano Ronaldo speaks honestly on Lionel Messi rivalry

Messi and Ronaldo are widely considered two of the greatest players of all time and competed against each other for football’s biggest prizes during their early years at Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Inter Miami currently has four pre-season matches announced, with one against El Salvador’s national team on January 19 and a match against a team of top players in Hong Kong on February 4. Calendar MLS competition is expected to begin in late February.