Cristiano Ronaldo has challenged old and young footballers to join him in Saudi Arabia and has claimed players like Karim Benzema are "very welcome".

What team is Benzema joining?

The former Manchester United star left the Premier League in the winter ahead of the World Cup and moved to the Saudi Pro League having signed for Al-Nassr.

Life hasn't always been easy for Ronaldo in his new environment though. For instance, fans slammed him for his petulant behaviour when he stormed off the pitch following a 0-0 draw away from home against Al Feiha.

Even so, it seems he is still enjoying life in Saudi enough to recommend other top players to swap European football for this different challenge.

And it seems he will be followed to the Saudi Pro League by a former teammate. Indeed, Karim Benzema is ready to make the move from Real Madrid, with Fabrizio Romano reporting he is nearly set to become a new Al Ittihad player.

While talking about more players joining him overseas in an interview with Goal, Ronaldo seemed more than happy with fresh competition in the league.

He said: "If they are coming, big players, big names, young players, old players, they are very welcome.

"Because if that happens, the league will improve.

"Age is not important, but competing players, young players – [it] depends on many factors."

Who is going to move to the Saudi Pro League?

Ronaldo is of course the big star in the Saudi Pro League, but some other names you might recognise from European football include David Ospina, Santi Mina, Helder Costa, and Grzegorz Krychowiak.

And it looks as though some other top players could soon be joining him with old La Liga nemesis Lionel Messi also linked with a move.

Indeed, Spanish outlet SPORT report that Al Hilal are hoping to announce a deal for the Argentine soon with a salary of €400m (£345m) per year being touted.

On top of that, Chelsea flop Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is wanted by Al Ahli and Al Shabab, while N’Golo Kante is also a reported target.

With those huge salaries on the table – Ronaldo apparently earns an astonishing £3.6m-per-week at his current club – it certainly won't be a shock if more big players from across Europe soon head to Saudi as their careers wind down.

And who knows, perhaps a few stars in their prime will also depart if the money is tempting enough.