Cristiano Ronaldo finally put an end to speculation regarding his next destination on Friday as he completed his anticipated move to Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr.
Manchester United parted ways with the Portugal superstar by mutual consent in November, despite the 37-year-old having over six months to run on his contract at Old Trafford.
That move came after an explosive interview in which Ronaldo declared he felt "betrayed" by United and expressed his lack of respect for manager Erik ten Hag and former boss Ralf Rangnick.
The World Cup appeared the immediate priority for Ronaldo, but he offered little with just one group-stage strike against Ghana as Portugal failed to progress beyond the last eight.
Despite Ronaldo unsuccessfully pushing to join a Champions League club prior to the start of the season, a return to Europe's elite competition still appeared possible with Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Sporting CP linked.
Major League Soccer was also touted as another avenue for the five-time Ballon d'Or winner, though he opted for a move to the Middle East as he left Europe for the first time in his remarkable career.
Here, Stats Perform explores why some potential destinations for Ronaldo did not come to fruition.
Major League Soccer
With the MLS season recently concluding, a move to North America would have presented Ronaldo with a clean slate for 2023 and boosted the profile of the league ahead of the 2026 World Cup taking place in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Ronaldo required a Designated Player spot for any franchise looking to make a move, eliminating several clubs from the equation, but David Beckham's Inter Miami were attributed with a strong interest.
However, as speculation grows over the Herons making a move for Lionel Messi, could Beckham and Miami really afford both superstars?
Sporting CP
Ronaldo's return to United was not as successful as fans would have wanted, but a fairytale reunion with boyhood club Sporting was still repeatedly suggested.
The prospect of Champions League football next season may have appealed to the forward, though Ruben Amorim's side will be playing in the Europa League this term after dropping out of UEFA's premier club competition.
While a storied move home may have interested the romantics, the links became increasingly frustrating for Amorim, who angrily responded to such questions during the World Cup.
"Ronaldo was in Qatar, they had the opportunity to ask him and they didn't. I've been asked 500 times and I already answered," he said after a December 19 win over Braga.
Bayern Munich
Reports suggested Julian Nagelsmann held talks with Ronaldo's agent Jorge Mendes, though Bayern Munich chief executive Oliver Kahn never envisaged the former Real Madrid star moving to Germany.
"We briefly discussed Ronaldo at Bayern and Dortmund probably did too," Kahn told BILD. "We also see the big picture of the Bundesliga.
"Of course, superstars like Ronaldo are an important factor in attracting attention to the league. He is one of the greatest of the last decade. But we quickly dismissed that."
Chelsea
Chelsea were repeatedly named as contenders to snatch the attacker from Premier League rivals United in a bid to appease new owner Todd Boehly's desire for a marquee Blues signing.
Thomas Tuchel was reportedly against the proposal – though his dismissal as Chelsea head coach earlier this year could have provided the catalyst for a change of heart at Stamford Bridge.
But Graham Potter and Boehly opted against a move with a plethora of attacking talent to call upon, while the Blues also appear strong favourites to sign breakout RB Leipzig star Christopher Nkunku.
Napoli
Top of Serie A and heading into the World Cup break on the back of an 11-match winning run, Napoli were touted as potential suitors for Ronaldo, who dominated the Italian top flight during three years with Juventus.
Striker Victor Osimhen has been linked with a move to United, but Napoli executives want to focus on the future – despite Ronaldo's remarkable output in the Champions League.
"We wanted to invest in a young team," Napoli sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli told Corriere dello Sport.
He later added to Sky Sport Italia: "We never really talked about Ronaldo. In football you get nowhere with ifs and buts. We are happy with the squad we have, we are confident this is a competitive team."
Atletico Madrid
He couldn't have, could he? After scoring 311 times in LaLiga for Real Madrid, a move to fierce rivals Atletico would have represented one of the most memorable transfers in history.
While some at the Civitas Metropolitano may have flirted with the idea of a seismic move for their archnemesis, coach Diego Simeone was never interested.
He told Tigo Sports: "Ronaldo is an absolute benchmark for Real Madrid and I would not see [Martin] Palermo ever playing for River, just as I wouldn't see [Juan Roman] Riquelme or [Ariel] Ortega playing for Boca. There are situations that are very clear."
Fatima College stuns San Juan North to claim top spot in SSFL Premiership Division
Fatima College moved to the top of the Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) premiership division standings on Saturday with a remarkable 5-2 win over San Juan North Secondary School at the latter's school ground.
Despite being reduced to 10 men after Captain Jaden Williams was sent off, Fatima scored three goals in the last few minutes of the match to turn a 2-2 draw into a resounding victory.
Jonathan Mason scored twice in the 87th minute and stoppage time, while Michael Chaves added a third in the 97th minute.
Fatima's other goals came from Aidan De Gannes and an own goal by Jaheem Danclar.
San Juan North had taken the lead through national youth player Lindell Sween in the 23rd minute, but Danclar equalized in the 26th minute.
Fatima then took the lead through De Gannes in the 33rd minute, but Nathan Quashie levelled the scores again for San Juan North in the 45th minute.
In other SSFL results on Saturday, Speyside High School defeated Pleasantville Secondary 3-1, Trinity College East came from behind to beat Malick Secondary 2-1, St Mary's College defeated Queen's Royal College 4-3, East Mucurapo beat Chaguanas North Secondary 3-0, Presentation College San Fernando crushed Bishop's High School 4-0, and defending champions St Benedict's College edged St Anthony's College 1-0.
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Nicolas Dominguez earns point for 10-man Nottingham Forest against Brentford
Nicolas Dominguez scored his first goal for 10-man Nottingham Forest as they held on for a 1-1 draw against Brentford at the City Ground.
Things looked bleak for Forest as they went down to 10 men just before the hour when Moussa Niakhate picked up a second yellow card, and immediately conceded to Christian Norgaard from the resulting free-kick.
But they rallied and Argentina international Dominguez levelled soon after with a looping header that Bees goalkeeper Mark Flekken appeared to misjudge.
Forest were able to see out the remaining 35 minutes with relative comfort to maintain their unbeaten start to the season on home soil.
The draw means Brentford have now gone five games without a win as their tricky start to the campaign continues.
There was a change to the match officials’ line-up after Darren England was dropped as fourth official following his mistake on Saturday night when, as VAR in Tottenham’s game against Liverpool, he failed to act properly in overturning the decision to rule out Luis Diaz’s goal for offside.
Craig Pawson was drafted in on the touchline and his colleagues in Stockley Park had an early test as Forest striker Taiwo Awoniyi converted from close range after Willy Boly’s header from a corner.
He was immediately ruled offside but it was closer than it initially looked, with VAR Michael Oliver this time consulting the horizontal lines to confirm the decision.
The game could have done with that early goal standing as a drab first half followed, with nothing of interest happening until added time when a short free-kick routine saw Norgaard advance into the box but his deflected shot was palmed away by Matt Turner.
The second half immediately brought more entertainment as Brentford were close to taking the lead when Yoane Wissa closed down Turner and the ball trickled towards the net but Boly cleared.
Forest endured a chastening couple of minutes just before the hour that led to the Bees taking the lead.
Niakhate fouled Wissa, raking his studs up the back of his opponent’s leg, with referee Paul Tierney brandishing a second yellow card.
And from the resulting free-kick Norgaard got goalside and nodded Mathias Jensen’s delivery into the corner, with the goal surviving a lengthy review for offside.
Forest’s response was admirable, though, and they levelled eight minutes later as Harry Toffolo’s cross found Dominguez and his header looped over Flekken, with the goalkeeper appearing to pull his hand away as it went over him.
The final half-hour was an attack versus defence exercise as Brentford pushed to make their numerical advantage count, but they came up against a resolute Forest rearguard.
Morgan Gibbs-White produced a fine goal-saving tackle as the Bees broke at speed while debutant defender Murillo cleared off the line from Michael Olakigbe, with Norgaard firing over from the rebound.
Forest put bodies on the line to see out 13 minutes of injury time and earn a valuable point.
That win goes down to the manager – Craig Dawson hails Gary O’Neil
Craig Dawson praised Wolves boss Gary O’Neil after their shock win over Manchester City.
The defender kept Erling Haaland quiet as Wolves earned a battling 2-1 win at Molineux on Saturday.
Hwang Hee-chan struck a second-half winner after Julian Alvarez had cancelled out Ruben Dias’ early own goal.
O’Neil had come in for early criticism from supporters, especially after Tuesday’s 3-2 Carabao Cup defeat at Ipswich, but Dawson insisted the manager deserved all the plaudits from Saturday.
He said: “A lot of credit has to go to the manager for getting us so organised, with the game plan, and getting us fully prepared for the match, which he has done for every single game. That win goes down to the manager.
“It was a massive win and it was great to see this place bouncing.
“It’s clear at times we were man to man and the players stuck to that task brilliantly and stuck to the game plan for the full duration of the game, which is great for the lads.
“It was all about concentration and keeping focused and credit to the manager for preparing us, getting us organised, and today we stuck to the plan and managed to get the victory.”
Defeat ended City’s flawless start to the Premier League season but they remain top, a point ahead of Tottenham and Arsenal – with a trip to the Emirates Stadium to come on Sunday.
“We’re all a bit disappointed now of course. We should have done more I guess,” midfielder Oscar Bobb told the club’s official site.
“We pushed for it and unfortunately didn’t get it. Leipzig (in the Champions League on Wednesday) is next, a big game ahead and then Arsenal. We’re only thinking forward.
“It’s not the greatest feeling, losing. I just want to keep pushing for more.
“It gives us the chance to prove that we’re still the best team, so we’re looking forward to it.”
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