Barcelona is reportedly floating the idea of playing games in Saudi Arabia, which could potentially see Cristiano Ronaldo play against them, and potentially Lionel Messi, who is expected to be their next signing. Ronaldo and Messi are considered to be two of the greatest football players of their generation, having shared 12 Ballons d’Or between them, mostly during their time at Real Madrid and Barcelona, respectively. Ronaldo currently plays for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, while Al-Hilal has reportedly offered Messi a lucrative deal to join them in the Middle East. However, Barcelona is facing legal and financial troubles, with accusations of paying former referee chief Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira €7.3 million over a number of years for favorable outcomes. UEFA has launched an investigation, which could lead to the club’s expulsion from the Champions League next season, even if they qualify as winners of La Liga.
Cristiano Ronaldo could find himself playing against Barcelona – and potentially Lionel Messi – again next season with the Blaugrana floating the idea of playing games in Saudi Arabia.
Barca could replace UCL with Saudi friendlies
According to reports, Barcelona is considering the possibility of playing friendlies in Saudi Arabia to fill the potential gap left by their exclusion from the Champions League, as they face legal and financial troubles. Eduardo Inda of OK Diario claims that Barcelona President Joan Laporta has spoken about the possibility of filling the European matchdays with friendly matches in Saudi Arabia. This could potentially see Barcelona and Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr play against each other, with Ronaldo having scored 20 goals in 34 career meetings with Barcelona. It remains to be seen whether Barcelona will be excluded from the Champions League, but if they are, it could result in a significant financial loss for the club.