Cristiano Ronaldo is never far from the headlines. This time, he is sharing space with Ivan Toney—not because the Englishman is leading the Saudi Pro League’s golden boot race with 27 goals (Ronaldo is third on 23 ahead of this weekend's fixtures), but because of Toney's allegations of pro-Ronaldo refereeing bias.
At the time of writing, there has been no action against Toney. It is not even clear the league will act, since doing so would bring greater scrutiny to his words—and many in the football world may be inclined to agree with him. It may be best for the league to leave it as the comments of a frustrated player.
But what is remarkable is that Toney cares enough. When he moved to Jeddah from London, many saw it as a player in his prime selling out. He may be making more money than he could have in better leagues, but Toney is not on vacation in Saudi Arabia. He is playing the best football of his life at the highest level now available to him. The outburst is proof of his dedication.
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Neither his form nor his commitment, however, has got him back into the England squad. Manager Thomas Tuchel named an expanded 35-man group for England's final pre-tournament friendlies against Uruguay and Japan in March—the last meaningful audition before the World Cup—and Toney was not in it. He has not been called up since last summer.
To understand how this happened, it helps to go back to the summer of 2024. Toney had just finished a difficult season at Brentford—disrupted by an eight-month ban for breaching FA gambling regulations—but had recovered well enough to be part of the England squad for Euro 2024. He played a role off the bench in England's run to the final, most notably assisting Harry Kane's winner in the round of 16 and converting a penalty in the shoot-out win over Switzerland in the quarter-finals, having replaced Kane in extra time.
That summer, with no Premier League club matching Al-Ahli's offer, Toney moved to Saudi Arabia. He was 28. The move made financial sense, making up for years of low earnings during a slow-burn rise through the English football pyramid.
His debut season at Al Ahli was strong—30 goals in all competitions. This season he is already at 36. Yet he does not appear to be in consideration as Kane's backup for the Three Lions.
The reasons are not hard to comprehend. The level of opposition in the Saudi Pro League is lower, the tactical demands are different, and the sample of high-quality defenders Toney faces week to week is smaller. A goal against mid-table Saudi opposition does not carry the same weight as one in a Champions League knockout tie. This is a reasonable position for an international manager to hold.
There is also a precedent. When Jordan Henderson left Liverpool for Al-Ittihad, he was dropped from the England squad almost immediately. The implicit message was clear: moving to Saudi Arabia is, for England selection purposes, a step outside the conversation.
But Henderson was past his prime. Toney is simply the best available option to back up Kane, regardless of the league he plays in. It is worth noting that Ronaldo has continued to perform for Portugal since his move to Riyadh. Kane's absence through injury in England's 1-0 defeat to Japan showed that the alternatives—Ollie Watkins, with Dominic Solanke and Dominic Calvert-Lewin as further options—are not doing the trick. Tuchel acknowledged the issue; he did not mention Toney.
In 2018, Anthony Martial missed France's World Cup-winning squad after falling behind Alexis Sanchez in Jose Mourinho's plans at Manchester United. His lack of playing time led Didier Deschamps, with an ample array of attacking talent at his disposal, to leave him out. Martial was sidelined by a decision he had no control over. But if England finally bring a World Cup home, Toney will have missed it for a decision he made himself. Meanwhile, England will be without his penalty-taking ability when it may matter most. Unless Tuchel changes his mind, the summer will tell who got it wrong—Toney or Tuchel.
