Crowd footage captures Cristiano Ronaldo’s response to opponent’s Lionel Messi chants

Yesterday at 03:25 PM

Despite playing in Saudi Arabia, Cristiano Ronaldo is unable to escape chants of his longtime rival Lionel Messi.

However, the Portuguese superstar delivered a surprising reaction when faced with a pocket of cheeky fans who thought they could poke the bear.

Ronaldo started up top for Al Nassr as they took on Al Taawoun in the Saudi Pro League on Friday as they looked to win a second game on the bounce.

However, Al Taawoun had other ideas and took the lead in first-half stoppage time via Saad Fahad Al Nasser.

Former Manchester City defender Aymeric Laporte scored the equaliser in the 64th minute, but unfortunately for the Saudi glamour side they could not find a winner.

It wasn’t for lack of trying as Ronaldo and his teammates fired off 19 shots in total to Al Taawoun’s three and had the lion’s share of possession.

Yet the winner remained elusive as Al Nassr fell 11 points behind league leaders Al Hilal and second-placed Al Ittihad.

Ronaldo went into the match on the back of scoring five goals in his last four league games.

However, the scoring streak came to an end and rival fans took the chance to poke fun at the 39-year-old by chanting Messi’s name.

But Ronaldo did not take the bait.

Instead, the former Real Madrid and Manchester United superstar flashed a smile and gave a thumbs-up in the direction of the supporters.

Although Ronaldo may have shown some restraint when faced with chants of his longtime nemesis, he did little to hide his frustration with some of his teammates.

Ronaldo was captured with his hands on his hips and taking a deep breath.

He then stretched his arms out before slapping them on his thighs in exasperation as nothing went right for Al Nassr.

As for Ronaldo’s reaction to the Messi chants, he may have acted different had it happened a few years ago.

Ronaldo and Messi shared a whopping 12 Ballon d’Or’s between them over the course of 15 years, with their rivalry dominating football when they played for Spanish giants Madrid and Barcelona respectively.

However, the two have not played in the same league since Ronaldo left Madrid for Juventus in 2018.

Given the two now play in Saudi Arabia and the United States, Ronaldo said in 2023 it was time fans of the pair should enjoy what they still have to offer rather than engage in heated debate.

“I don’t see things like that, the rivalry is gone,” Ronaldo said.

“It was good, spectators liked it. Those who like Cristiano Ronaldo don’t have to hate Messi and vice versa.

“We’ve done well, we have changed the history of football. We are respected all over the world, that’s the most important thing.

“He’s followed his path and I have followed mine, regardless of playing outside Europe.

“From what I’ve seen, he’s been doing well and so have I. The legacy lives on, but I don’t see the rivalry like that.”