Ronaldo Marks Al-Nassr's 71st Birthday as Cubarsi Ranks His Toughest Rivals
Cristiano Ronaldo marked the 71st anniversary of Al-Nassr on 24 October, posting a short tribute to the Saudi Arabian club he has led since joining in early 2023. “71 years of passion! Happy birthday, Al-Nassr!” the Portuguese forward wrote on social media, a message picked up quickly by football fans across Asia and Europe.
The anniversary lands at an interesting moment for the club, which has spent the past few seasons building a squad around one of the most famous athletes on the planet. For a global audience unfamiliar with the Riyadh side, Al-Nassr are one of Saudi Arabia’s oldest and best-supported clubs, and Ronaldo’s arrival turned them into a fixture of international broadcasts almost overnight.
Ronaldo’s message was not the only place his name appeared this weekend. Barcelona centre-back Pau Cubarsi, still a teenager but already a regular against Europe’s best attackers, ranked the hardest forwards he has faced in an interview with ESPN. Kylian Mbappe came first, Lionel Messi second, Ronaldo third, Ousmane Dembele fourth and Vinicius Junior fifth.
Cubarsi’s ordering is the kind of small detail that travels far in football culture: a young defender, asked to compare legends and current stars, offering a ranking that will be debated in comment sections for days. That he places a 41-year-old Ronaldo above most active forwards says something about how the Portuguese is still perceived inside the game, even as his career moves through its later chapters in Saudi Arabia.
Elsewhere in Europe, the weekend’s fixtures carried their own weight. In Italy, former Fiorentina and Inter forward Michele Serena said Inter remain the strongest team in Serie A, citing their depth of “almost two line-ups,” while calling Fiorentina’s position in the table “awful” ahead of the two clubs’ meeting. Roma defender Gianluca Mancini, meanwhile, praised his side’s refusal to fold after conceding a third goal in a 3-3 draw at Napoli.
In Spain, attention turned to the Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid at the Camp Nou, with Barcelona inviting former greats including Frank Rijkaard, Ronald Koeman and Jordi Cruyff to watch from the stands. Atletico Madrid sporting director Mateu Alemany kept his focus on his own club’s match against Deportivo La Coruna, saying any Clasico result would suit Atletico as long as they won.
In England, Tottenham’s 2-0 win at Chelsea — only their second Premier League victory at Stamford Bridge — dominated the London derby talk, with Chelsea coach Xabi Alonso left to reflect on Cole Palmer’s red card and a midfield that lost control.
For Ronaldo, the birthday post is a reminder that his reach now stretches well beyond any single league. A short line of congratulations from Riyadh becomes a global football item, and a teenager’s ranking in Barcelona becomes another measure of a career that refuses to fade quietly.