No sooner than he landed in the Saudi Pro League, a clause in Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr contract could see him return to England and, crucially, the Champions League.
The 37-year-old’s world record move to the Middle East was finalised on New Year’s Eve, with the Portuguese star signing a two-year contract as part of a deal worth more than £177m a year. Crikey.
Given Newcastle United‘s current ownership, the report claims that he could be loaned to the Magpies as part of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, which has seen state money pumped into the teams like Al Nassr and Newcastle.
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While part of the reason Ronaldo ended up in the Gulf state was that very few clubs on the planet could afford his astronomical wage expectations — said to have been on over £450,000 a week during his second stint at Man United — Newcastle’s ties could see him back in the Prem come next season.
The resurgent North East club currently sit third in the English top flight following some key investments made with Saudi money and Eddie Howe having finally begun to implement his own style of football.
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Moreover, should they manage to secure CR7’s signature using what is, effectively, a shared pool of wealth, it would be a huge coup that would generate serious revenue and global exposure for both teams over the next couple of years. He’s already made a start over in Saudi.
Having long been one of the most best-performing and decorated Champions League performers in history, becoming the competition’s greatest goalscorer of all time (141), not to mention having insisted that he wanted to keep playing at the top level, Ronaldo will no doubt be keen to return however he can.
Ronaldo landed in the country’s capital of Riyadh on Monday ahead of completing his medical; the side will obviously be looking to get him on the pitch as soon as possible.
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If he turns out to be fit enough, fans can expect him to make his debut as a substitute against Al-Tai on Thursday 5 Jan and, and if not, he will surely start for his new club against Al-Shabab on January 14. He can expect a warm welcome when he does:
Featured Image — Newcastle United (via IG)/Al-Nassr FC (via Twitter)
Sport
Manchester set to host five UEFA EURO 2028 matches – including England’s opening game
Emily Sergeant
Manchester has been confirmed to be the host of five matches at the upcoming UEFA EURO tournament in 2028.
This also, crucially, would include England‘s opening match, should they qualify directly.
The joint announcement by Manchester City and Manchester City Council today comes as UEFA has now released key details about the UK & Ireland 2028 competition – which, as it stands, is less than 1,000 days away.
It has been confirmed that the Etihad Stadium – which is known as The City of Manchester Stadium when not relating to Manchester City football club – will host four Group Stage matches across four different groups, offering both local and international football fans the chance to see a range of different national teams in action.
On top of this, Manchester will also be the host a Round of 16 knockout match as the tournament progresses.
UEFA EURO 2028 will kick off at the National Stadium of Wales in Cardiff on Friday 9 June 2028, culminating in the Final at Wembley Stadium on Sunday 9 July 2028.
Across the UK and Ireland, nine stadiums will host matches during the upcoming tournament – with other northern stadiums including Everton Stadium in Liverpool, and St James’ Park over in Newcastle.
More than three million tickets – as sold by UEFA – are set to be available for the tournament, and more information on this will be issued in due course.
Following an independent assessment, UEFA EURO 2028 is expected to generate up to £3.6 billion in socio-economic benefits for the UK and Ireland between 2028 and 2031, with benefits including job creation, regional growth, and direct spending from international visitors.
The countdown has started in Manchester for #EURO2028!
Five matches are scheduled to be played here – including England's opener if they qualify – and more than 300,000 fans will be welcomed to the city in June 2028.
“We’re a city where football runs deep in our DNA, and we’re counting down the days to UEFA Euro 2028.”
Featured Image – The Manc Group
Sport
Man City to open latest Greater Manchester club shop at Trafford Centre
Danny Jones
Manchester City Football Club are set to open another brand-new store at the Trafford Centre, and just in time for Christmas.
With the festive period approaching, plenty of people will be looking to buy the latest shirts and merch of their beloved team, and with the Blues now a bigger brand than ever, they’ve put plenty of time into levelling up the club shop experience.
Their third in Greater Manchester, all told, it’s also set to be one of their largest to date.
Credit: The Manc Group
Although confirmation of the plans came back in October, City have officially announced themselves in the Trafford Centre this month.
With the hoardings going up over on Peel Avenue – the section of the huge mall arguably most well-known for its multi-storey John Lewis department store – they’ll be opening their doors just next to the branch of Waterstones.
In fact, you definitely can’t miss it because not only is there a giant MCFC badge plastered over the windows, but it also happens to be right next to the big Christmas tree.
This comes after sports and streetwear franchises like Gymshark and Urban Outfitters joined the North West tourist attraction, not to mention the massive Zara and Bershka sites that opened recently, as well as other global names like Pop Mart.
An idea of what the new Man City store in the Trafford Centre could look like, based on the Arndale shop. (Credit: The Manc)
Put simply, there’s been plenty of new arrivals this year, and there are several others to come.
Although we’ve not got an exact opening date just yet, the posters displayed across the window simply read “Coming November”, so Cityzens won’t have to wait long.
Furthermore, job vacancies for retail roles working within the upcoming location are already listed on the official Trafford Centre careers page.
Last but not least, there are scheduled be a number of other new openings in the shopping arcade, leisure and entertainment destination, so keep your eyes peeled on socials for more info soon.
Danny Jones -
3rd January 2023 
