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Cristiano Ronaldo FINALLY makes his Al Nassr debut after serving a two-match ban from his Man United days following a £175m a year move, with Anderson Talisca scoring the only goal in the win over Ettifaq
- Cristiano Ronaldo made his delayed Al-Nassr debut in a 1–0 win over Ettifaq
- Ronaldo joined Al-Nassr last month on a £175m a year contract.
- Brazilian Anderson Talisca scored the only goal in the Saudi Pro League match
Cristiano Ronaldo’s competitive debut for Al-Nassr ended in victory, but no goals for the Portuguese, as his new team defeated Ettifaq 1-0 in the Saudi Pro League.
The 37-year-old joined Al-Nassr last month on a £175m a year deal until 2025.
That came after the former Juventus and Real Madrid striker’s existing contract with Manchester United was canceled after a high-profile interview in which he criticized the club and officials.
Cristiano Ronaldo made his highly anticipated Al Nassr debut in a 1-0 win over Al Ettifaq in Riyadh
Ronaldo’s teammate Anderson Talisca scored the only goal of the Saudi Pro League match
Ronaldo, who scored twice for a Riyadh All Stars team in a 5-4 loss to Lionel Messi’s Paris St Germain in an exhibition game in the Saudi capital on Thursday, played the full 90 minutes for the league leaders. against Ettifaq on Sunday, but did not. make a revealing contribution.
Brazilian Anderson Talisca, a former Benfica striker, scored the only goal of the game on the half hour mark.
The victory keeps Al-Nassr one point clear of Al Hilal at the top of the table having played 14 games, one less than their nearest rivals.
Ronaldo made it into Al-Nassr’s starting line-up for the first time after his impressive move.
The 37-year-old striker failed to score in his first game for his new club
Ronaldo was forced to wait for his debut as he received a two-game ban from the FA after smashing an Everton fan’s phone last year.
As a consequence, Ronaldo missed Al-Nassr’s 2-0 win against Al-Tai and their 0-0 draw with Al-Shabab.
Al-Nassr was also forced to make room in his squad to sign the Portuguese superstar.
Vincent Aboubakar had his contract terminated by the Saudi Arabian club to make way for Ronaldo, and the Cameroon striker has since joined Turkish side Besiktas.
The decision was due to Saudi League rules which state that clubs can only register up to eight foreign players per team.
Ronaldo had to wait for his debut due to serving a two-game ban from the FA.
Ronaldo has been very well received by soccer fans since his arrival in Saudi Arabia.
Ronaldo had joined Al-Nassr after a difficult couple of months, including the striker’s controversial departure from Manchester United.
The 37-year-old had given an explosive interview to Piers Morgan, in which he saw him take aim at various aspects of the club.
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag and the owners the Glazers were among those who criticized Ronaldo, leading to his departure.
Ronaldo was subsequently left on the bench for Portugal’s two World Cup qualifying qualifiers in Qatar.
It was reported that the striker had a fight with the then head of the national team, Fernando Santos.