“Ronaldo to Saudi Arabia, at first everyone thought I was crazy,” remarked Neymar.
Neymar, 31, has vowed to help the Saudi Arabian league build on the momentum created by Cristiano Ronaldo, 38, after leaving Europe to join Saudi Arabian professional soccer’s Al-Hilal.
“I’m very happy to be in a new league, it’s a new experience, a new challenge, and I’m looking forward to making history,” Neymar said in an interview on Al-Hilal’s YouTube channel on Sunday.
Al-Hilal announced the signing of Neymar the day before, saying he had signed a two-year contract.
Neymar, who has played professionally for Santos in Brazil, FC Barcelona in Spain and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in France, leaves Europe after a decade in Barcelona.
Neymar, who joined PSG for a preseason tour but left shortly after the start of the season, is reportedly worth more than $100 million (approximately $134 million). European and American media outlets have reported a transfer fee of 90 million euros (about $131.5 billion).
The deep-pocketed Saudi league has been attracting world-class players since the signing of Ronaldo from Al-Nasr in January, and the arrival of Neymar, a Brazilian national soccer team icon in his early 30s, is the culmination of a “frenzy” in the kingdom.
“Facing a challenge like this boosts your pride,” Neymar said, “and I’m here to help the league grow even more.”
“There are a lot of changes. There are a lot of new players. The league is going to be very competitive,” he said, emphasizing that “I think it all started with Ronaldo.”
“I think it all started with Ronaldo,” Neymar added, “when he first arrived, everyone was saying he was crazy and all that, but now you can see the league growing.
Neymar will play for Al-Hilal, a prestigious club that has won 18 titles in the Saudi league, the most in its history.
In addition to Neymar, this season’s roster includes Portugal’s Ruben Neves, who spent last season with Wolverhampton in the English Premier League.
“The goal is to win all competitions,” Neymar said. “I expect the team to have a great season and achieve its goals. I will do my best.”
He added: “Meeting the best players from other teams motivates me to play better. It’s always more exciting to play against Ronaldo, 카지노사이트넷 Karim Benzema (Al Ittihad) or Roberto Firmino (Al Ahli),” he added.