Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo pledged to remain in Saudi Arabia next season on Thursday despite failing to land any silverware since his lucrative move to the oil-rich kingdom. 

Ronaldo’s January signing for Al Nassr has been followed by speculation about how long he will stay, including reports of a swap deal with Saudi-owned Newcastle United who have now qualified for next season’s Champions League. But the 38-year-old said in an official Saudi Pro League interview: “I am happy here, I want to continue here, I will continue here. And in my opinion if they continue to do the work that they want to do here, for the next five years, I think the Saudi league can be a top five league in the world.”