Cristiano Ronaldo’s escape from reality

Once a great and influential player, Ronaldo is now an avatar of human greed and a symbol of a worrying shift in the sport

IN ATTENDANCE: Cristiano Ronaldo attends his new teams match against Al Tai on the Saudi League at Marsool Park in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Pic: Amr Nabil/AP

It would be too easy, not to mention cheap and pointless, to snigger and sneer and laugh at Cristiano Ronaldo right now.

And yet I think we should still snigger and sneer and laugh at Cristiano Ronaldo, if only because laughter is probably as good a response as any to a week when Ronaldo has confirmed beyond all doubt he is definitely in it for the kids – and not, not for the money – by signing for Al Nassr of Riyadh in a mindboggling £173m-a-year sport-ertainment deal.