When Alexi Lalas learned David Mosse had planned to binge-watch Saudi Pro League: Kickoff, the USMNT icon texted his fellow pundit, saying, “Alright, I’ll check it out.” Exactly 5 days later, during their regular State of the Union podcast segment, Lalas shared his thoughts on the documentary, admitting, “I couldn’t finish two episodes.” Surprisingly, though, his main issue wasn’t with the content itself but with seeing Cristiano Ronaldo sitting in a “freaking chair” to support his son, Cristiano Jr.!

Too much going on, right? As for the context, the 6-episode Netflix documentary that was released on November 21 is all about the 2023/2024 season of the Saudi Pro League. It spotlights global icons and local talents transforming the league, capturing the teams’ challenges, triumphs, and setbacks, providing an unfiltered glimpse into Saudi’s soccer arena.

In Episode One: A New Dawn, one scene shows Ronaldo visiting Al Nassr’s youth center to watch the club’s budding talents putting in the work, including his own son, Cristiano Jr., working hard on the pitch. Since Lalas had watched up to two episodes, he took note of this and expressed his disappointment with it. “There’s a scene where Cristiano Ronaldo is at the youth development club of Al Nassr, watching his kid in a freaking chair on the sideline…don’t do that, no,” he said in the podcast.

Notably, the Portuguese superstar can be seen talking about his son, praising the teenager’s quality, almost seeming like he is deliberately trying to belabor every detail. “I love Cristiano because of his arrogance, but no man, you need to be self-aware. That’s not a good thing,” explained Lalas, his dismay towards the 39-year-old. Well, it’s not like visiting his son during training is a bad thing.

Not to mention, Ronaldo’s arch-rival, Lionel Messi, has often been pictured sipping mate alongside Luis Suarez, as both forwards bring their kids to watch their respective elder sons play at the Herons’ academy level. But when Ronaldo does it, why the hypocrisy? To clear the air, it’s not that Lalas didn’t like the idea of Ronaldo paying a visit for his son, but the former defender isn’t impressed with the Al Nassr star’s over-elaboration just for the sake of the cameras, making it look fake. That explains why Alexi’s lambasting over the documentary didn’t end there!

Cristiano Ronaldo not alone as Alexi Lalas slams ‘varnished’ Saudi Pro League: Kickoff documentary

Alexi Lalas claimed that the whole documentary seems quite sugarcoated, with no element of keeping the viewers hooked. “It’s not completely unvarnished, but it is varnished…I just thought it was boring. There was nothing completely happening, no real drama, no real villain. I felt like it was an advertisement and a propaganda,” he added.

Lalas also noted that featuring the majority of only the top 4 Saudi teams—Al Hilal, Al Nassr, Al Ittihad, Al Ahli Saudi, and its star players like Ronaldo, Neymar, and Benzema—made it seem ‘anti-advertisements,’ rather than setting an endorsement tone of SPL. He also found the use of the phrase ‘We’re not just here for money’ quite annoying.

Either way, such remarks are far from music to the ears of Cristiano Ronaldo, the Saudi Pro League, and Netflix stakeholders. Despite their efforts to make the documentary a hit while promoting the Middle East’s domestic culture, they may not have impressed many.