Ronaldo Makes Bold Title Declarations for Al Nassr Despite Heavy Defeats in Preseason

• Cristiano Ronaldo has set high ambitions for next season
• The 38-year-old missed out on the Saudi top flight last season
• His Al-Nassr side are currently in Japan for the continuation of their pre-season preparations

Cristiano Ronaldo has expressed his strong determination to secure silverware with Al-Nassr in the upcoming campaign.

Last season, Ronaldo and his Al-Nassr teammates came close to clinching the Saudi Pro League title but narrowly missed out to Al Ittihad, despite holding the top spot for a significant portion of the campaign.

Aside from the league setback, the Riyadh-based club faced disappointment as they were eliminated in the semifinals of the Saudi King Cup and also missed out on the Super Cup.

This led to Ronaldo enduring consecutive trophyless seasons after his uneventful second spell with Manchester United.

In response, Al-Nassr has made significant additions to their squad. They have acquired the talents of Marcelo Brozovic, who played a crucial role in helping Inter Milan reach the Champions League finals last season.

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Additionally, the club has welcomed RC Lens captain Seko Fofana and Alex Telles to join forces with Ronaldo in the Gulf state.

Moreover, Fabrizio Romano reports that the nine-time Saudi champions are rumoured to be closing in on a move for Sadio Mane, the out-of-favour Bayern Munich forward, in preparation for what promises to be an exciting 2023-24 campaign.

Despite these reinforcements, the club's poor pre-season results, evident in heavy defeats against Celta Vigo and Benfica, highlight the challenges they currently face.

Nevertheless, Ronaldo remains confident in his ability to lead the team to victory and bring home trophies.

“We hope to win all the trophies," Ronaldo said as quoted by CristianoXtra on Twitter.

He continued: "We know it will be difficult, but we have a good team, coach and new players, the ambitions are the same as last year, and we are looking to have a great season, and of course, I want to win some trophies this year.”

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Ronaldo's Al-Nassr suffer crushing loss

In a previous publication, Sports Brief reported that Al-Nassr stumbled to their second successive defeat in pre-season following a crushing defeat against Benfica.

The 4-1 scoreline deals a second successive defeat to the 2022-23 Saudi Pro League runners-up in a span of three days, following their previous loss to Spanish La Liga outfit Celta Vigo.

Up next for Ronaldo and his Al-Nassr teammates is a tough test against Paris Saint-Germain on July 25.