Cristiano Ronaldo has been banned from making his much-hyped debut for his Saudi Arabia side tomorrow night, Mail Online can reveal.
His new club Al Nassr, who are reportedly paying him £175million a year, have sold all 28,000 seats for the game against Al Ta’ee and should see him launch his Arabian adventure amid huge fanfare.
But the self-proclaimed “unique” player, who left Manchester United in bitterness, is yet to be punished for an offense and has been told he is banned from playing for Al Nassr, a source revealed.
Cristiano Ronaldo has been banned from debuting for new side Al-Nassr tomorrow night
Ronaldo was fined £50,000 and suspended for two games by the English Football Association on November 17.
He was found guilty of inappropriate and violent behavior after slapping the phone out of the hand of an Everton fan after United lost a game at Goodison Park last April.
He hit Jacob Harding on the hand as he charged down the tunnel, damaging the boy’s phone.
His mother Sarah Kelly said her son’s hand was also injured by Ronaldo.
With the investigation still ongoing last month, it was reported that Ronaldo would accept a misconduct charge from the FA but was determined to fight the threat of a possible ban.
The independent FA panel, chaired by Christopher Quinlan KC, found Ronaldo guilty of “a deliberate and violent slap in the face” which was “an irritable act”.
He is yet to serve a two-game ban handed to him by the Football Association in November for slapping a phone out of the hand of an Everton fan during a game last season
FIFA regulations see Ronaldo’s two-game ban being transferred to new club Al-Nassr
Ronaldo told the hearing via electronic submission that the atmosphere at the game at Everton was “feverish” and hostile.
He said he was injured by a bad tackle late in the game but stayed on the pitch. The United players exited the pitch via a walkway that was not the regular players’ tunnel, he said.
Ronaldo said the crowd was aggressive and he and other United players were abused by Everton supporters/supporters as they left the pitch.
The striker said that as he walked down the sidewalk he saw a rather low arm in front of him pointing at his injured leg.
He said he couldn’t see who the arm belonged to, but he could see that it was “holding an object,” but he didn’t know what.
The incident for which Ronaldo was banned came after United’s 1-0 defeat in April (pictured)
He said his instinctive reaction was to “beat the object away,” adding the incident was “an instinctive proactive response.”
He said it was not a premeditated act, nor was it intended to temporarily harm anyone or anything. He later found out the bystander holding the object was a teenager and he said he contacted the boy’s mother to apologize.
But the panel dismissed Ronaldo’s claim that he was concerned for his own physical safety and well-being after leaving the pitch.
It said: “We understand that the viewer posed no actual or perceived threat to the player. The player could have just walked around it or ignored it. He walked slowly and calmly, just like the other players. No one seemed to behave in a threatened manner. It was an atmosphere that was not alien to him.
“Instead, he moved his shin guard from his left hand to his right hand and hit the spectator’s hand hard. We have little doubt that this was done out of frustration and anger rather than fear or concern for his wellbeing.”
The Saudi side had sold out all 28,000 seats for their game against Al Ta’ee tomorrow night and were due to see Ronaldo’s launch of his Arabian adventure amid great fanfare
Ronaldo had hoped to avoid suspension but the Winter World Cup meant Premier League football was put on hold.
United played Fulham on 13 November and continued first team action after Qatar on 21 December against Burnley in the EFL Cup.
Ronaldo, the source said, was unavailable for two competitive first-team games as his contract with United was torn up.
The ban applies to his next club and effectively prevents Al Nassr from showing off his new star striker until he has played two competitive games for which he should have been available.
Article 12.1 of the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players reads: “Any disciplinary sanction of up to four matches or up to three months imposed on a player by the former association but up to the date of the transfer shall be enforced by the new association , with which the player has been registered for the sanction to be served at the national level.”
Ronaldo was unveiled in front of Al-Nassr fans at the club’s stadium on Tuesday night
This point was noted by the FA when the ban was imposed and the case written in November.
They had said: “We note that the player participated in a recent interview in which he was critical of MUFC. We do not know what impact this could or will have on his future at this club, nor if he will take any disciplinary action in this regard. The ban we imposed must work.
“In other words, it applies to MUFC’s first-team competitive games for which he can be selected. Should he leave MUFC before completing two competitive first-team games, the remainder of the ban will apply to any new club he should join.
At his unveiling, Ronaldo claimed he had the opportunity to sign for clubs in Europe and several countries around the world including Brazil, Australia and the US before joining Al-Nassr
The Saudi team now have two games to play before Ronaldo can play for them
“This applies to the Premier League and, pursuant to Article 12.1 of the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players, beyond: “Any disciplinary sanction of up to four matches or up to three months imposed on a player by the former association appointed to the Any penalty not (entirely) served at the time of transfer will be enforced by the new association with which the player was registered so that the sanction can be served at national level.
“When issuing the ITC, the former federation must inform the new federation via the TMS of any such disciplinary sanction still to be (fully) served.”
After tomorrow’s game, which he will miss, Al Nassr will not play again until Saturday 14 January in a derby against Al-Shabab.
The ban will be a blow to thousands of Ronaldo’s new club fans who have bought tickets and queued for shirts bearing his name and the number ‘7’.
Ronaldo left Manchester United in November after his explosive interview with Piers Morgan
More than 5,000 Ronaldo shirts, costing around £50 each, have been sold at the club store in the last 24 hours, the manager told Web.
His picture is on billboards across Riyadh and he is under 24-hour surveillance and driven around in a fleet of cars with blacked-out windows.
But Al Nassr will still walk him from the stands tomorrow night as he has said he wants to see his teammates play.
Before announcing the ban, Ronaldo had already stunned the owners of his new club by referring to Saudi Arabia as ‘South Africa’ in his first press conference last night.
Despite saying that various clubs in Portugal, across Europe and Brazil were keen to sign him, Ronaldo has reportedly been rejected by several European teams – despite being made available at a huge discount of £80,000 a week.
Ronaldo had claimed: “I’ve had many opportunities in Europe and many clubs in Brazil, Australia, USA and even Portugal, many clubs have tried to sign me. But I gave this club my word.
Al-Nassr fans must now await the Portuguese star’s much-anticipated debut
The 37-year-old smiled at his unveiling as he was joined on the pitch by his family
“I know what I want and I know what I don’t want. It is a good challenge for me to change and to use my knowledge and experience to help grow here in many important areas.
“I want to convey a different vision of the country and football. That’s why I took this opportunity.”
Ronaldo flew to Saudi Arabia on Monday night and was paraded in front of 28,000 fans at the club’s stadium last night, with money from ticket sales going to charity.
He was joined by his partner Georgina Rodriguez and their children as he arrived in style before changing from a three-piece suit to the club’s yellow jersey and showing off some of his skills as well as kicking a football into the crowd.