After a thrilling tie with Al-Ahli, Cristiano Ronaldo pledged to “keep believing” and encouraged his Al-Nassr colleagues to fight “until the last moment”.
For his most recent achievement of achieving 900 career goals, Ronaldo was honored by Al-Nassr with a special GOAT jersey, making it a delightful start to the evening in Riyadh. But things quickly soured as the Portuguese found it difficult to create an impression and occasionally found himself under attack.
The match really got going in the second half when Ivan Toney, making his Saudi Arabian debut after leaving Brentford in the summer, and Franck Kessie of Al-Ahli connected for the game’s first goal. Nevertheless, a stroke of luck saved Al-Nassr from defeat when, in the ninth minute of stoppage time, Sultan Al-Ghannam’s cross found its way into the net after deflecting off Al-Ahli defender Bassam Mohammed Alhurayji and looping past goalkeeper Edouard Mendy.
Even though it wasn’t one of Ronaldo’s best games, the forward posted a rallying cry on social media following the game: “Until the very last minute. Hold onto your faith!”
After dropping their first three Saudi Pro League games, Al-Nassr have to bounce back swiftly if they are to win the championship. When they play Al-Ettifaq on Friday, the team hopes that Ronaldo can find his scoring form again.
