Injuries to athletes never come at a good time and often cause more than one complication. This is the case for Cristiano Ronaldo, who has been ruled out of the next few games after being diagnosed with a hamstring injury following Al Nassr’s last game against AlFayha (3-1).
Although he has begun the rehabilitation process and his condition will be evaluated on a daily basis, the Portuguese player is forced to sit out a few games and put his dream of winning his first official title with the club on hold, as well as the run-up to what could be his first World Cup.
CR7’s injury has a much greater impact than is believed
In Al-Nassr’s last game, the Portuguese star set off alarm bells and had to be substituted for what was initially thought to be muscle fatigue; however, the final diagnosis was worse.
According to the official medical report shared by the team, ‘El Bicho’ will be out of action indefinitely, meaning he could miss key matches with both Al Nassr and the Portuguese national team.
With only 10 games remaining in the Saudi Pro League and considering that they lead the league with 61 points, but are closely followed by Al-Ahli with 59, Jorge Jesus’ team has no margin for error, especially now that they are without their legendary striker, who has scored 21 goals in 22 league games this season.
He is expected to miss the upcoming matches against NEOM SC and Al-Khaleej, but his time out could be extended depending on how his recovery progresses. This takes on another perspective when we consider that this could be Cristiano’s chance to win his first title with the team he signed for in December 2022.
Fortunately, the team managed to win the two games that CR7 missed in protest, proving that they are capable of overcoming the Portuguese star’s absence, although this time, the context is completely different.
As if that weren’t enough, it is also very likely that he could not only miss a couple of Saudi Pro League games, but also be left out of his commitments with the Portuguese national team, 100 days before the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Ahead of the call-up for the double FIFA matchday in March, Cristiano could miss the opportunity to play the only games before what will be his sixth and final World Cup. Portugal is expected to face Mexico on March 28 at Estadio Banorte and USMNT on March 31 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, but his absence would prevent the coach from conducting final tests with his captain on the field.
Personally, the injury also temporarily halts his challenge to reach 1,000 official goals in his career, stopping the counter at 965. Meanwhile, only time will tell when we will see the Portuguese player back on the field.
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