Cristiano Ronaldo joins Al Nassr: Portuguese striker's glorious legacy in European football

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Days after turning free agent, Portuguese star striker Cristiano Ronaldo has joined Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr after his stint with Premier League giants ended on a bitter note.

Ronaldo has signed a deal with the Saudi club till June 2024 which is going to make him richer by 200 million euros. The club has hailed the move as historic and it is set to usher in a new era in Pro League's history.

His move to Saudi also ends one of the greatest careers in the history of European football. However, it will be unwise to claim that Ronaldo couldn't make a return to Europe in the future but his age and the nature of his behaviour at Manchester United during his second stint definitely make it improbable.

Ronaldo eager to discover football in a different country

"I am eager to experience a new football league in a different country. Al Nassr Club's vision is very inspiring," the club quoted Ronaldo as saying. The 37-year-old penned a contract which will take him to June 2025.

"I can't wait to discover a new football league in a different country," said the former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus player.

Al Nassr posted an image of the Portuguese star on Twitter in which he could be seen holding a blue and yellow T-shirt with his favoured number seven and name 'Ronaldo' printed on the back.

Ronaldo, the five-time Champions League winner and the top scorer in the history of European football's premier club competition leaves his legacy as one of the all-time greats. The legacy of the five-time Ballon d'Or winner striker in European football is secure.

However, with seven top-flight league titles and a plethora of other trophies to his name, Ronaldo's impact on the continental game went beyond his goals on the grandest club stage.

Here Stats Perform looks back on his seismic impact in European club football.

Ronaldo's Premier League emergence

Ronaldo's return to the Premier League may not have gone to plan - the 37-year-old only scored once in the competition this term before an explosive interview with Piers Morgan led to his Old Trafford exit.

However, the three-time Premier League winner certainly made his mark in England, scoring 103 goals in 236 top-flight games for United.

Having burst onto the scene as a tricky winger, Ronaldo recorded 37 assists in the competition for the Red Devils, who he also helped to their third European title in 2008.

He also claimed his first Ballon d'Or while in Manchester in 2008 after scoring 31 goals in their title-winning 2007-08 campaign - that single-season tally has only been bettered by three players in the competition's history.

Making history with Madrid in LaLiga

Ronaldo may be treated as a legend at United, but it was at Real Madrid where he really made his name as one of football's greatest, becoming Los Blancos' top scorer with 450 goals in all competitions.

Incredibly, the Portugal forward averaged over a goal per game throughout his trophy-laden spell in Spain, hitting the net 311 times in 292 appearances in LaLiga.

Ronaldo scored with 16 per cent of his shots for Madrid, a higher percentage than he managed in the Premier League, Serie A or the Champions League.

Madrid may be famed for their Champions League accomplishments, but Ronaldo also helped them to two domestic title triumphs in 2011-12 and 2016-17, netting 46 times as Jose Mourinho's side earned 100 points in the first of those campaigns.

Serie A success with the Bianconeri

Given Juventus' failure to win the Champions League, few consider Ronaldo's time in Turin to be an unmitigated success. The raw numbers, however, suggest otherwise.

Managing 81 goals in 98 league appearances for a club in perpetual crisis - with a conversion rate of 15 per cent - tells the story of how Ronaldo evolved in Serie A, honing his game as the ultimate penalty-box forward in his advancing years.

Despite a tumultuous period which saw Maurizio Sarri replace Massimiliano Allegri, Juventus stretched their incredible run of Scudetto success to nine consecutive seasons.

That stint ended in Ronaldo's final full campaign at the Allianz Stadium, though he still finished as Serie A's top scorer with 29 goals.

The Champions League master

For those who believe Ronaldo to be the greatest to have played the game, the Portugal forward's exploits in the Champions League are always the crucial factor, the trump card.

Ronaldo's record of 140 goals in the competition is unmatched, though his great rival Lionel Messi (129) may have something to say about that if he declines to follow his fellow forward's lead in exiting Europe.

Averaging almost a goal contribution per game (180 in 183 appearances), Ronaldo won an astonishing 115 games in the Champions League, lifting the trophy five times - a joint-high tally.

As Madrid cemented their status as European masters by winning three consecutive titles between the 2015-16 and 2017-18 seasons, Ronaldo top-scored in the competition every season, cementing his legacy as the ultimate big-game player.

(With Inputs from OPTA/OmniSport)