Cristiano Ronaldo's exceptional footballing qualities are undisputed, it's not for nothing that he was named World Footballer of the Year five times. But Ronaldo is also a social media superstar: 539 million people follow him on Instagram alone. The Portuguese knows how to stage himself, which also benefits his new club Al-Nassr. The Saudi Arabian club have also gained almost 12 million Instagram followers since signing Ronaldo.
But like many other users on social networks, Cristiano Ronaldo's posts do not always reflect reality – or only a part of it. That was evident following the 37-year-old's debut for his new club. Ronaldo was captain in his first game and later celebrated a 1-0 win. "First game, first win - well done boys," he wrote on Instagram and thanked for the support.
Typical social media footballer talk. Ronaldo also posted a few impressions of the game: In addition to a team photo with his new teammates, there was also a picture showing him doing a spectacular overhead kick (see picture above). Ronaldo is across the air, the opponent seems to duck away in fear. A scene apparently intended to illustrate its dynamism and (undoubtedly existing) technical excellence.
Alone: In reality, the situation played out a little differently. Agency and television pictures show how the scene unfolded. They also show the moments after this snapshot. And they show that Ronaldo actually made a rather embarrassing mishap in this scene: the 2016 European champion missed the ball when he attempted an overhead kick and hit an air hole. Instead of the ball, Ronaldo even hit the opponent with his right foot, who then doubled over on the ground and clutched his ribs.
After the actual context was uncovered, the post on Instagram caused some amusement – because no matter how many enthusiastic followers Ronaldo has, he is so unpopular with others because of his sometimes supposedly arrogant manner. Whether he is not only on Instagram, but also on the football field Cut a fine figure and lead his new team to sporting success remains to be seen: Ronaldo has signed a contract with Saudi Arabia for two and a half years.
Source: Cristiano Ronaldo on Instagram
