Cristiano Ronaldo’s call to Premier League star leaked as his transfer wish is snubbed

Cristiano Ronaldo personally reached out to one of the Club World Cup’s brightest stars this summer with hopes of securing him as an Al-Nassr team-mate, only to be knocked back in favour of Wolves

Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly tried and failed to convince Jhon Arias to team up with him at Al-Nassr this summer, with the midfielder snubbing him for Wolves. After impressing with Fluminense at the Club World Cup, the Colombian found himself linked with a number of top clubs worldwide.

It is reported that Riyadh-based Al-Nassr, who finished third in the Saudi Pro League last season, were one of the teams interested in securing the 27-year-old’s services. And it is even said that Ronaldo went as far as reaching out to Arias himself via a personal phone call to help tempt the star to the Saudi Arabian capital.

Former Newcastle United star Faustino Asprilla told ESPN’s EquipoF: “An Arab team was very excited, eager to sign Jhon Arias. It was Al-Nassr, Cristiano Ronaldo’s team. The kid (Arias) received a call from Cristiano Ronaldo asking him to go over there to play with him at Al-Nassr. Cristiano has shares in the team.”

On the pulling power of Ronaldo given his incredible career, Asprilla added: “It’s easier for Cristiano to convince someone than the owner. If Cristiano calls you… he called to see if he would change his mind because he hadn’t signed yet, but he wanted to go to the Premier League, so he thanked Cristiano, and they offered him a lot of money, but he didn’t accept and went to England.”

Ultimately, Arias opted for a move to the Premier League with Wolves, with Fluminense announcing on Friday: “Fluminense has completed the definitive transfer of forward Jhon Arias to Wolverhampton, retains 10% of the economic rights from any future sale of the player.

“Fluminense thanks him for all his dedication and professionalism and wishes him much success in this new stage.” While the club did not confirm how much the fee for letting Arias leave his club of four years, Brazilian media estimate that a deal to the tune of around £19million was finalised.

After coming through the youth systems of Dorados, Tijuana and Patriotas, Arias signed his first professional contract with the latter in 2018, spending just one year with the Colombian side before moving on to America de Cali. A move to Santa Fe ensued the following year, before Arias joined Fluminense in 2021.

The star spent four years with the Brazilian outfit, scoring 47 goals and providing 55 assists in 230 appearances, shining especially bright at this summer’s Club World Cup in the United States. During the competition, he made eight appearances, found the back of the net twice, and bagged one assist before Fluminense were eliminated by tournament winners Chelsea in the semi-finals in a 2-0 defeat.

Arias is Wolves’ third signing of the summer so far, also welcoming Fer Lopez and Jorgen Strand Larsen on permanent deals as they look to improve after a lacklustre 2024/25 campaign in the English top flight. Wolves finished 16th last season, with just 12 wins and six draws to show for their efforts, and Vitor Pereira will be eager to make changes to the squad he inherited from Gary O’Neil in December.

After missing out on securing Arias, Al-Nassr, meanwhile, are now seemingly looking at bolstering their strike force in the coming weeks. The Saudi-based club have recently found themselves linked with Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez as the Reds edge closer to the signing of Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike.

Nunez arrived on Merseyside in a club-record transfer from Benfica potentially totalling £85m back in 2022, but has failed to live up to his price tag in the years since. While the 26-year-old has found the back of the net 40 times for the club in 143 appearances, he registered just five in 30 in the Premier League last season in a far from prolific showing.

As a result, Nunez has been linked with a mega-money move to Saudi this summer. Al-Nassr have emerged as the frontrunners after Napoli pulled out of contention, but the likes of Barcelona, AC Milan and Al-Hilal have also been credited with an interest in the Uruguayan.

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