Joao Felix joins Cristiano Ronaldo at Saudi Pro League Al Nassr

Portuguese superstar persuades international teammate to follow him to Riyadh

Joao Felix signs for Al Nassr. Photo: Al Nassr / X

Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr on Tuesday confirmed the signing of Portugal international Joao Felix from Chelsea.

The deal for the 25-year-old attacking midfielder is reportedly worth up to €50 million, including performance-related bonuses.

Felix was given permission to discuss terms with the Riyadh club earlier in the week after a fee was agreed with Chelsea, and he jetted out to join the SPL outfit at their pre-season training camp in Austria.

The transfer was something of a poorly-guarded secret with Felix even being filmed taking part in a session alongside his new Al Nassr captain and international teammate Cristiano Ronaldo on Monday afternoon.

“I'm here to spread joy. Let's win together,” said Felix in a video posted to Al Nassr's social media channels on Tuesday.

The forward reportedly turned down an offer to return to boyhood club Benfica to instead secure a move to the kingdom.

Ronaldo is said to have intervened and persuaded his compatriot that Nassr was the best option as he attempts to revive a once promising career that has stalled badly in recent seasons.

Felix was one of the hottest properties in world football when he made a €126m move from Benfica to Atletico Madrid in 2019, but he never fully settled in the Spanish capital with his style of play at odds with the demands of manager Diego Simeone.

He scored 25 goals across a five-year stint with Atletico that was punctuated by loan spells with Barcelona and Chelsea, who chose not to take up their option in the summer of 2023 only to return 12 months later and seal a permanent deal.

However, just 12 first-team appearances and one goal followed as Felix failed to build on the flashes of promise he had shown while on loan at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea managed to recover most of the fee they paid Atletico Madrid last summer, and also banked a £5m loan fee having farmed him out to AC Milan for the second half of the 2024/25 campaign.

The Club World Cup winners have already offloaded goalkeepers Djordje Petrovic and Kepa Arrizabalaga and winger Noni Madueke this summer.

They are still looking to cut their losses on several fringe players, including Raheem Sterling, Ben Chilwell, Renato Veiga and Armando Broja.

They have already spent more than £200m on new signings such as striker Liam Delap, winger Jamie Gittens and forward Joao Pedro, while they remain keen to conclude deals for Ajax defender Jorrel Hato and RB Leipzig midfielder Xavi Simons.