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It is true that this is only an exhibition game, and the two biggest stars of our generation are past their prime, but football fans were nevertheless disappointed to learn yesterday that Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will not meet on the field for the "last shot" because the veteran Portuguese is injured and will not be able to take part in his team's game against Al Nasser Inter Miami today (Thursday).
As part of the exhibition match in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo was due to share the pitch with arch-rival Ballon d'Or winner Leo Messi as Cristiano continues to recover from injury.
Nasser's coach, Luis Castro, confirmed the 38-year-old's absence and said yesterday: "Ronaldo is in the last part of his recovery. We hope that in the coming days he will be able to start playing with the squad."
The loss is all ours.
Cristiano/Reuters
The main thing is to come with a smile.
Messi/GettyImages
Ronaldo and Messi have met each other on 36 previous occasions in their illustrious careers, mostly playing for Real Madrid and Barcelona.
The football fans were waiting for the last match, if only to see the meeting between them, now that both are old and reconciled.
But Cristiano is injured, and in fact Al Nasser canceled its game tour in China that was planned "specially" for Ronaldo's fans, in light of the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's injury.
The Saudi team is on break, with the league scheduled to return on February 14.
Many fans in Saudi Arabia were outraged by the conduct of Al Nasser, who in recent days uploaded videos of Cristiano participating in training, apparently in an attempt to promote the game and sell tickets, even though it was known to the team leaders that he would not be able to participate.
As expected, many fans on the network continued the petty rivalry that characterized the previous decades between the two stars, claiming that Ronaldo is a "coward" and that he is avoiding a meeting with the Argentine.
However, in Argentina itself they did not take the accusations seriously, and even in the Argentine media they claimed that "a parade that Cristiano will be absent and the world missed the last dance".
Inter Miami is also currently on a pre-season tour, which included a visit to Saudi Arabia.
Their first game was against Al Hilal on Monday, when the MLS team lost 4:3.
The game against Al Nasser is their second in Saudi Arabia, as part of the Riyadh Cup.
Inter Miami will finish the journey against the Hong Kong 11, the Japanese club Vissel Kobe and the Argentinian Newell's Old Boys, from the city of Rosario - Messi's hometown.
Inter Miami's opening game of the MLS season is against Real Salt Lake City on February 22.
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Lionel Messi
Cristiano Ronaldo