Cristiano Ronaldo salutes fans as he watches Al-Nassr’s 4-4 draw with Al-Hazm from the stands while serving one-game ban for ‘obscene gesture’… but his celebrations are cut short by 99th minute equaliser
- Cristiano Ronaldo was suspended for one match for ‘an obscene gesture’
- He watched from the stands as Al-Nassr drew 4-4 against Al-Hazm
- We never thought it would be ‘warrior’ Bruno Fernandes, but where would Man United be without their captain? Listen to the It all starts podcast
Al-Nassr fans showed their support for Cristiano Ronaldo as he watched his team draw 4-4 against Al-Hazm on Thursday evening.
The Portuguese superstar served his one-match ban for making an obscene gesture after Al Nassr’s 3-2 win over Al Shabab on Sunday.
Video footage appeared to show Ronaldo grabbing his ear in response to “Messi, Messi” chants and repeatedly raising his hand near his pelvis, in a gesture that appeared to be aimed at Al-Shabab fans.
The 39-year-old was subsequently banned by the Disciplinary and Ethics Committee of the Saudi Arabia Football Federation and fined 20,000 Saudi Riyals (£4,300).
Wednesday’s chants were more to Ronaldo’s taste as Al-Nassr fans serenaded the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star in the seventh minute of the match.
Cristiano Ronaldo responds to fans who chanted his name as he watched Al-Nassr’s 4-4 draw against Al-Hazm from the stands on Thursday evening
The Portuguese served a one-match ban for ‘making an obscene gesture’ in Al-Nassr’s 3-2 win over Al-Shabab on Sunday.
Al-Nassr fans unveiled a banner honoring Ronaldo as ‘the world scorer’
The timing was a deliberate nod to Ronaldo’s shirt number at the Saudi club and the Portuguese responded by pumping his first towards the crowd.
The 39-year-old later celebrated what he thought was the winning goal when Sadio Mane converted a 94th-minute penalty, before Al-Nassr conceded an equalizer in the ninth minute of stoppage time.
Talisca had given Al-Nassr the lead from the penalty spot in the first half, before Ahmad Al-Mhemaid leveled for the visitors shortly after the restart.
Al-Nassr led four times against number two Al-Hazm, but had to settle for a draw
Ronaldo looked far from impressed as Al-Nassr gave away the lead four times
Ronaldo celebrated Sadio Mane’s penalty in the 94th minute that seemed to have sealed the victory for Al-Nassr, but his side conceded the equalizer five minutes later
Talisca restored the hosts’ lead in the 61st minute, before Toze leveled the score again five minutes later.
Al-Nassr regained the lead when Talisca completed his hat-trick with twenty minutes remaining, before Faiz Selemani drew the visitors level for the third time with six minutes remaining.
Mane then converted a 94th-minute penalty that appeared to have secured all three points for the hosts, before Paulo Ricardo equalized with essentially the last kick of the match.
The result puts Al-Nassr in second place in the Saudi Pro League with 53 points in 22 matches, six behind Al-Hilal, who have a game in hand.
Al-Hazm, meanwhile, remains second from bottom with 15 points, five of which fall short of safety.
Earlier this week, Ronaldo received a lot of criticism from former players and commentators in Saudi Arabia for his party on Sunday
According to Saudi media reports, the 39-year-old told the committee that the gesture was a victory and was common in Europe.
It is not the first time that the Portuguese star has been at the center of controversy since joining Al-Nassr.
Last April, as he left the field after a match against Al-Hilal, Ronaldo appeared to grab his genitals as fans chanted Messi’s name. On that occasion, Al-Nassr said that the attacker had suffered a groin injury during the match.
