Behave yourself, Cristiano! Ronaldo will always be a GOAT - but silly behaviour & petty gestures are ruining the final chapter of his sensational career

Ronaldo has been scoring for fun at Al-Nassr, and no one bettered his haul of 54 goals for club and country in 2023. The Portuguese took delight in outdoing "young animals" like Manchester City's Erling Haaland, and insisted he could still play on for another 10 years, but he's missing the bigger picture.

The Saudi Pro League is still a long way from being one of the top divisions in world football, despite the influx of European talent to the Middle East over the past year. Ronaldo's prolific output in the final third counts for little among the purists, who just see a once-great player stat-padding while pocketing obscene wages.

There would be nothing wrong with that, if he was still being a role model to the millions of youngsters that look up to him and could admit that Al-Nassr is just a place for him to wind down towards retirement. But Ronaldo seems to still genuinely believe he is the number one player in the game, and construes any suggestion otherwise as a personal attack.

Ronaldo netted his 22nd goal of the 2023-24 Pro League season from the penalty spot last Sunday, setting Al-Nassr on their way to a crucial 3-2 victory over Al-Shabab that keeps them within sight of Al-Hilal at the top of the table. However, after the final whistle, Ronaldo was too distracted by the home crowd to focus on celebrating the three points with his team-mates.

Al-Shabab supporters attempted to rile Ronaldo up with chants for his long-time rival Lionel Messi, and got what they wanted, with footage on social media showing the striker cupping his hand to his ear before making a lewd fist-pumping gesture in front of his genital area.

There appeared to be little doubt Ronaldo was motioning in the direction of the fans, and the Saudi FA subsequently launched an investigation, amid a fierce public backlash. Ronaldo was eventually punished with a one-game ban and 30,000 Saudi Riyals (£6,300) fine by an ethics and disciplinary committee.

The final verdict came after remarks from popular Saudi journalist Waleed Al-Farraj, who had urged the FA to make an example of Ronaldo - as The Athletic reports. “Everything has limits, no matter how (much of a) star you are,” Al-Farraj said.

According to Al-Riyadiya, Ronaldo explained his actions in an official statement. He is reported to have said: "I respect all clubs and the action in the shot expresses strength and victory and is not disgraceful, and we are used to it in Europe."

The sheer ignorance of that statement cannot be overlooked. Ronaldo is not in Europe anymore, and it is his duty to be aware of Saudi Arabia's conservative customs as a foreign national.

Marca has reported that Ronaldo's gesture was seen as "immoral" by a country known for its strong religious beliefs, and he should consider himself lucky that he's not facing a much longer suspension. And to make matters even worse, it's not the first time that the former Real Madrid and Manchester United superstar has exhibited such childish behaviour in his first year in the Middle East.

Ronaldo was faced with more Messi taunts during Al-Nassr's 2-0 defeat to Al-Hilal in the Riyadh Season Cup final on February 8, and allowed his frustration to get the better of him again when making his way down the tunnel.

Al-Hilal supporters threw a team scarf at Ronaldo, which he then appeared to rub near his crotch before hurling it back in the direction it came from. There were no sanctions imposed after that incident, with the Portugal international getting the benefit of the doubt despite similar controversy in April last year.

After another loss to Al-Hilal, this time in the final weeks of the 2022-23 Pro League season, Ronaldo grabbed his crotch when trudging off the pitch, much to the outrage of Saudi lawyer Nouf Bint Ahmad. She described the gesture as a "crime that requires detention and deportation" in a post on social media, and Ronaldo was subjected to another investigation, before ultimately being cleared of any wrongdoing.

Al-Nassr even came out to defend their prized asset, saying in a quite frankly absurd official statement: "Ronaldo suffers from an injury. His challenge with Gustavo Cuellar, the Al-Hilal player, started with a blow in a very sensitive area. This is confirmed information. As for the fans’ explanations, they are free to think whatever they want.”

Ronaldo's first vulgar gesture to Al-Hilal fans also came after Messi chants, which are now common in the opposing stands at Al-Nassr matches. Despite everything Ronaldo has achieved in the game, and his undeniable standing as of the greatest players of all time, it seems that he is still overly sensitive to any mention of his Argentine nemesis.

Messi took the spotlight away from Ronaldo's ground-breaking move to Saudi when he took up a new challenge in MLS at Inter Miami after leaving Paris Saint-Germain, and the Portuguese was quizzed on whether the competition between them still exists while on international duty in September. Referring to himself in the third-person without any sense of irony, Ronaldo replied: “The rivalry is over. It was good, a healthy rivalry that spectators liked a lot. Whoever likes Cristiano Ronaldo doesn’t have to hate Messi or vice-versa because they’re both very good. They changed the history of football, and they keep on doing it.”

If Ronaldo truly believed that, he wouldn't feel the need to keep shutting down those who fall into Messi's camp. For many, the Barcelona legend settled the GOAT debate once and for all after winning the 2022 World Cup with Argentina, but Ronaldo has never been close to the same level in terms of pure ability - and that's nothing to be ashamed of.

There will probably never be another player that can match Ronaldo's incredible drive and hyper competitiveness, or his prowess in front of goal. There is no reason for the Al-Nassr superstar to hold himself up against Messi, not least because they've always been very different players, and he'd enjoy the final stage of his career far more if he were to properly let their rivalry go.

Ronaldo might not be ready to hang up his boots just yet, but he should be putting more thought into his legacy, which will only suffer more needless damage if he continues to act like an entitled brat. His son, Cristiano Junior, will also be eager to follow his example, having already made a promising start to his own football journey by winning an U13s league title with Al-Nassr.

As part of his £177m per year ($215m) contract at the club, Ronaldo is required to serve as an ambassador for Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 project, which has been designed to "achieve the goal of increased diversification economically", and he's done his part so far by promoting the country on social media.

But he also also needs to set an example on the pitch, with his professionalism as well as performances. Despite the fact Ronaldo has long passed his best, he is still statistically speaking the most popular sportsman on the planet, with well over 600 million followers on Instagram.

With so many eyes still on him, including the next generation of talented young players, Ronaldo has a responsibility to conduct himself properly. There was never any issue when he used to block out the outside noise and let his football do the talking, and that's exactly what he needs to do again to go out on a high.

Al-Nassr are still fighting on three trophy fronts, with AFC Champions League glory the ultimate goal, and a strong finish to the season would set Ronaldo up perfectly for Portugal's Euro 2024 campaign. If his mind is right, Ronaldo is capable of helping Roberto Martinez' side reach the latter stages of the tournament.

He just has to decide how he wants to be remembered. If Ronaldo truly values his place in football's Hall of Fame, it's time to cut out the silliness.