Ronaldo Inspires Al-Nassr Into Saudi Super Cup Final

By Paul Orude

Cristiano Ronaldo and Joao Felix fired Al-Nassr into the Saudi Super Cup final with a 2-1 victory over Al-Ittihad, despite playing most of the game with 10 men after Sadio Mane’s red card.

The semi-final in Hong Kong produced drama from the start. Al-Nassr goalkeeper Bento almost gifted Karim Benzema an early goal with a misplaced pass, but the Frenchman missed the target.

Moments later, Mane gave Al-Nassr the lead when he turned in Marcelo Brozovic’s cross, though goalkeeper Hamed Al-Shanqiti could have done better with the shot.

Al-Ittihad hit back quickly through Steven Bergwijn, who slotted home from a clever cut-back to level the scores at 1-1. Things got worse for Al-Nassr soon after, as Mane was sent off for stamping on Al-Shanqiti during a challenge in the box.

Despite being a man down, Al-Nassr found a way back thanks to Ronaldo’s brilliance. On the hour mark, the captain broke the offside trap and unselfishly squared the ball for Felix to score the winner.

Felix thought he had a second goal late on, but it was ruled out for a foul by Ronaldo in the build-up. Still, Al-Nassr held firm to secure the win and book a place in the final, where they will meet the winner of Al-Qadisiyah vs Al-Ahli.

For Ronaldo, it is one step closer to lifting his first trophy with the Saudi club.