Ronaldo will reportedly receive the biggest football salary in history at more than £177m per year.

Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo has joined Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr on a deal that will run until 2025.

Announcing the news Friday on Twitter, the club posted a picture of Ronaldo holding up a yellow No. 7 Al Nassr jersey and said: “History in the making. This is a signing that will not only inspire our club to achieve even greater success but inspire our league, our nation and future generations, boys and girls to be the best version of themselves. Welcome @Cristiano to your new home @AlNassrFC.”

Ronaldo was a free agent after his high-profile November break-up with Manchester United following a controversial interview in which he criticised the club. Since his departure, there have been rumours from United that he was close to signing with a Saudi Arabian club, which the footballer had previously denied.

In a November interview with Piers Morgan for TalkTV, the striker said he felt “betrayed” by United, had no respect for manager Erik ten Hag, and was being forced out of the club.

When the 37-year-old first joined United in 2003, he transformed himself from a tricky, skillful winger into one of the best players in the world, winning three Premier League titles, the FA Cup, two League Cups, the Champions League, and the first of his five Ballon d’Or crowns before moving to Real Madrid in 2009.

Though the Portugal captain was largely used as a substitute by Ten Hag, he turned down a summer £305m deal to join another Saudi team, Al Hilal, because he was happy at United. In October, however, he refused to continue playing against Tottenham Hotspur, choosing to rather walk down the tunnel with minutes of the match still remaining.

Though his immediate departure from United was “mutually agreed”, he had just over seven months remaining on his £500,000-a-week contract with the club.

Ronaldo will reportedly receive the biggest football salary in history at more than £177m per year. The footballer says he is “eager to experience a new football league in a different country”.

According to him: “I am fortunate that I have won everything I set out to win in European football and feel now that this is the right moment to share my experience in Asia.”

Despite a disappointing 2022 Qatar World Cup with Portugal, Ronaldo made history by becoming the first man to score in five World Cups.