‘Wasn’t nice to see’ – Michael Smith’s only ever Manchester United game left Cristiano Ronaldo with ‘regret’

Darts may soon be the next sport to move to Saudi Arabia and that’s music to the ears of Michael Smith’s Cristiano Ronaldo-mad son.

Smith is waiting for the perfect opportunity to watch the Al Nassr superstar again – after the first incident proved a disaster.

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That could be in Ronaldo’s new Saudi residence, which has been mooted as a distant option to stage the PDC World Darts Championship.

Former champion Smith has been adamant that the tournament should remain at its spiritual home of Alexandra Palace.

However, the 34-year-old can’t deny that a Saudi relocation would be welcomed by other members of his family.

Smith’s two sons are huge Ronaldo fans, with the darts king himself a self-confessed ‘armchair’ Manchester United supporter.

‘Bully Boy’ took Michael Jr and Kasper to Old Trafford in October 2022 when five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo was in his second spell at the Red Devils to watch the football icon in action.

The game Smith chose was Man United’s 2-0 win over Tottenham that started the beginning of the end of Ronaldo’s time at the club.

The Portugal captain didn’t play a single minute but stole all the headlines after refusing to come off the bench.

Ronaldo also made his way down the tunnel before the final whistle and later claimed he was provoked by then-manager Erik ten Hag.

During an exclusive interview with talkSPORT.com, Smith said: “I’m an armchair fan. I’ve been to one United game, I think, in my life.

“I took my boys to watch Ronaldo when we played Spurs at home. That was the game he threw a little hissy fit and walked off and wouldn’t come on.

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“It wasn’t nice to see, but no, my boys were always asking, because they want to go to Saudi to watch him play.

“They want to go to Miami to watch [Lionel] Messi play.

“It’s my youngest boy as well, he always wants to go and see them, but I’m not fussed about it. I’m not really bothered. It’s up to them.”

In his interview with Piers Morgan, Ronaldo somewhat expressed ‘regret’ for his actions on the bench while still blaming Ten Hag.

Following that Spurs game, he made just two more Premier League outings for United before his contract was ripped up in December.

That was the same month Smith began his historic PDC campaign that resulted in his maiden world title triumph in January 2023.

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He returns to Alexandra Palace hoping to deliver another show-stealing performance following a year of inconsistent form.

Smith picked up his first ranking title in 11 months in May but will fall out of the world’s top 10 should he suffer an early defeat this month.

The former World No.1 has plenty of darts boards in his house to practice – but they’ve only ever been used by his sons.

Smith instead hones his craft in his personal man cave alongside his regular stints at his mum and dad’s pub in St Helens’.

He added to talkSPORT, on behalf of AceOdds: “Kasper’s got one his height in his bedroom, and Junior has one at his height.

“He’s playing full distance. But that’s them, they can do whatever they want. That’s why I’ve just built a game room.

“My dartboard is in there so I’m actually leaving the house.

“I still practice at the pub, but this is for when the kids have finished their training, like rugby or football or whatever they’re doing.

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“I’m getting home late, so at 8:30 at night. It takes me half an hour to get to the pub.

“We had this built so at least I can come in here then at 9 o’clock at night, do a couple more hours, back in the house, and then go straight to bed.

“At least I’m leaving the house and going to work. If I’m stuck in the house I’m not going to work. There are too many distractions.

“Seeing what’s on Telly, ‘Loose Women’ might come on or something. I only want to look across and watch it.”

Michael Smith spoke to talkSPORT.com via AceOdds.