“I already saw it in the World Cup” - Cristiano Ronaldo offers opinion on Qatar during reunion with ex-Real Madrid star Joselu
Cristiano Ronaldo recently had an interesting conversation with former Real Madrid striker Joselu. The two former teammates met up in the tunnel before Al-Nassr's game against Al Gharafa in the AFC Champions League.
Joselu initially joined Los Blancos in 2009 before breaking into the first team in May 2011. He scored on debut, from a Cristiano Ronaldo cross, for the reigning LaLiga champions against Almeria in an 8-1 win.
The Spaniard shared the pitch with the Portuguese on a few other occasions the following season, before leaving Real Madrid in the summer of 2012.
On Monday, he faced his old teammate in the AFC Champions League, a game that turned out to be the Cristiano Ronaldo show. The 39-year-old scored a second-half brace to guide the Riyadh-based side to a 3-1 win. Joselu scored the only goal for Al-Gharafa.
Before the game, the two players were seen catching up in the tunnel. AS has now published the conversation.
“Everything good?” asked Ronaldo
“Life is very good here,” responded Joselu.
“I already saw it in the World Cup and I already realized that life is good in Qatar,” said Ronaldo.
Joselu returned to Real Madrid in the summer of 2023 on loan from Espanyol. The Spaniard enjoyed a decent campaign with Los Blancos, registering 17 goals and three assists from 49 games across competitions.
The LaLiga champions triggered the option to sign him permanently at the end of the campaign. However, Al-Gharafa signed the 34-year-old from Real Madrid a day after the LaLiga champions had secured his signature.
How much did Real Madrid pay to sign Cristiano Ronaldo?
Cristiano Ronaldo joined Madrid in the summer of 2009 as one of the best players in the world. The Portuguese had won the Ballon d'Or with Manchester United the previous year.
Los Blancos reportedly paid £80m for the player and it would prove to be a tremendous investment. Ronaldo took his game to a whole new level with the Spanish champions, winning 16 trophies during his nine-year stay at the club.
That includes two LaLiga titles and four Champions League trophies, along with UEFA Super Cup, Copa del Rey, FIFA Club World Cup, and Supercopa de Espana. The Portuguese would go on to register 450 goals from 438 games for Real Madrid before leaving in 2018.
Juventus paid a reported fee of £99m for Ronaldo, who spent three eventful seasons at Turin. After a short second stay with Manchester United, the player joined Al-Nassr in December 2022.