After much anticipation, Cristiano Ronaldo’s comeback to the Saudi Pro League ended in disappointment as Al-Nassr lost humiliatingly 3-1 against Al Raed at home.
The 39-year-old, who was suspended the week before and missed Al-Nassr’s exciting eight-goal match against Al Hazem, failed to turn the tide for the struggling Knights of Najd, who extended their awful run of play.
How Al Raed surprised Al-Nassr, Ronaldo
Ronaldo and his colleagues were optimistic going into their match against Al Raed, who were barely above the relegation zone, after suffering their first loss in the AFC Champions League on Monday against Al Ain.
But after only eighteen minutes, Karim El Berkaoui broke the stalemate by taking advantage of defensive errors from Al-Nassr, swiftly eroding their confidence.
Six minutes later, Ayman Yahya gave Luis Castro’s team a point back, but the giants from Riyadh made another error early in the second half when Mohammed Fouzair took advantage of a defensive blunder to give Al Raed the lead once again.
If this is what’s happening tonight I can’t even think of what will happen on Monday!
— Al Nassr Zone (@TheNassrZone) March 7, 2024
The 2023 Arab Cup champions attempted to shift the game’s trajectory with a few substitutions, but their greatest opportunity to equalize came when Cristiano’s free kick struck the crossbar.
To make matters worse, Amir Sayoud’s late goal gave the visitors the win.
With this loss, Al-Nassr is now nine points behind league leaders Al-Hilal, who, barring a miraculous turnaround, are expected to win the league for the 19th time.