30 August 2023 , 08:30
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Cristiano Ronaldo's classy gesture to help a teammate score their first goal of the new season didn't go to plan, when they instead missed the penalty he gave them.
Ronaldo had already scored twice to help Al-Nassr take a commanding lead against Al-Shabab, with former Liverpool star Sadio Mane also on the scoresheet. Then just after the hour mark, the hosts won a third penalty, with Ronaldo having been expected to take it.
Instead though, the Al-Nassr skipper handed the ball to Abdulrahman Ghareeb, who has failed to score in his first four games this term. It meant he was turning down a huge chance to notch a hat-trick, but Ronaldo appeared happy to do so to boost his team-mate.
In fact, the former Manchester United star and Mane even acted as cheerleaders, trying to whip up the crowd in support of Ghareeb. Unfortunately, his attempts to help Ghareeb break his duck backfired, with the Al-Nassr star instead hitting the post with his spot-kick.
Ronaldo did go home happy though, having scored twice from the penalty spot earlier in the game. His first came 12 minutes in, sending Shabab keeper Seung-Gyu Kim the wrong way to find the bottom corner.
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He then saw a second goal controversially ruled out just minutes later when referee Ismail Elfath adjudged him to have pushed a defender before he had powered a brilliant header into the net.
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Cristiano Ronaldo gave up the chance to score a hat-trick, but his team-mate missed the penaltyRonaldo did finally score his second later in the first period, putting another penalty just beyond the reach of Kim. The attacker then turned provider for Mane, sliding in the Senegal captain to finish coolly.
While Ghareeb did miss the chance to put them four goals up, Sultan Al-Ghannam made no mistake with 10 minutes to go to wrap up a convincing win. Al-Nassr now move up to sixth in the table, though they are some way back from leaders Al-Ittihad.
Still, Ronaldo was delighted with his evening's work, hailing the support of the Al-Nassr fans. He wrote on Instagram : "What an amazing atmosphere in our stadium! Very happy to celebrate this win with our fans! Fantastic performance from the Team! Vamooos."
Al-Nassr boss Luis Castro was also happy to see his side claim a dominant win, though he took aim at the decision to rule out Ronaldo's header.
"My foremost aim is to bring joy to everyone, and I'm elated to work with this exceptional global collective. Although we haven't achieved the level of harmony we aspire to, our continuous development is evident," he said.
"Why did the referee negate Cristiano's goal today? In the Saudi league, I've witnessed comparable instances where the push was even more robust than what we observed today, yet the goal was validated... Although I won't reference the specific match, it was witnessed by all."