The Portuguese said yes to Al Nassr with a pharaonic contract, but the list of players who have chosen distant and well-paid leagues to end their careers is long: Bettega already landed in Toronto almost 40 years ago
Al-Nassr coach Rudi Garcia compared Cristiano Ronaldo’s arrival in Saudi Arabia to Pelé’s arrival at the New York Cosmos. The comparison is there, O Rei marked the pinnacle of the Nasl, the American League, together with Beckenbauer, Cruijff and our Chinaglia. Garcia hopes CR7 does the same with the Saudi League. Pelé and associates landed in the mid-70s in a fledgling tournament, born towards the end of the 60s, as a consequence of the interest in soccer after the 1966 English World Cup. The “Black Pearl” of Tres Coraçoes had retired in 1974, leaving his Santos. At almost 35 years old, for 4.5 million dollars at the time, he decided to sign for three years for the New York Cosmos, owned by Warner Communications. His gesture paved the way for other champions such as compatriot Carlos Alberto, another world champion (the German Franz Beckenbauer) and Giorgio Chinaglia (he will be top scorer four times) who, between ’76 and ’77, joined the Cosmos, three times champions until 1980.