Cristiano Ronaldo has been omitted from the Saudi Pro League's team of the season, with for Manchester United loanee Odion Ighalo picked to lead the line instead.
Ronaldo joined Saudi club Al Nassr back in January after his contract with United was terminated following an explosive interview with Piers Morgan where he openly criticised the club and new manager Erik ten Hag. The Portuguese superstar's switch to Al Nassr saw him sign a hugely lucrative deal worth £173m-a-year and he has gone on to 14 league goals in 16 appearances this season as his side finished second behind Al-Ittihad.
Despite only joining midway through the season, Ronaldo's goalscoring exploits saw him finish as the league's fifth top scorer. However, it was not enough for him to be named in the team of the season.
Ighalo, who failed to score a single Premier League goal during his loan spell at United, was picked ahead of Ronaldo after netting 19 times for Al-Hilal in 27 appearances. He was joined up front by Firas Al-Buraikan, who scored 17 goals in 30 games, and Mourad Batna, who scored 10 times in 25 appearances.
Former Bayern Munich star Luiz Gustavo was picked in midfield alongside Al-Ittihad's Romarinho and Al-Taawoun's Kaku. Ex-West Brom defender Ahmed Hegazi was named at centre-back, partnering his Al-Ittihad teammate Ahmed Sharahili.
Madallah Al-Olayan and Ghislain Konan were picked as full-backs, while for Brazil international Marcelo Grohe was picked in goal. Reflecting on his first season in Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo insisted he was enjoying his time at Al Nassr and believes the Saudi Pro League could become one of the best in the world.
"I am happy here, I want to continue here, I will continue here," he said earlier this month. "And in my opinion if they continue to do the work that they want to do here, for the next five years, I think the Saudi league can be a top five league in the world.
"I will be part of your world, your culture, I will be here, I hope I make the people enjoy through my games, my performance, and to win things, but again, thank you for welcoming me, and I will try to give my best during the time that I will be here.
"I like to do what I do. My passion is to play football. I have played it for many, many years but it is still a joy for me. My motivation is to play and to make people happy. To make myself happy, my family happy and all the kids happy. This is my goal."
