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Al Nassr manager attaches blame to Cristiano Ronaldo for Saudi Super Cup loss after costly miss

Home> Football

Updated 10:26 27 Jan 2023 GMTPublished 10:14 27 Jan 2023 GMT

Al Nassr manager attaches blame to Cristiano Ronaldo for Saudi Super Cup loss after costly miss

Cristiano Ronaldo is still searching for his first Al Nassr goal after drawing a blank in the defeat to Al Ittihad.

Josh Lawless

Josh Lawless

Al Nassr manager Rudi Garcia laid some of the blame on Cristiano Ronaldo after his side were beaten 3-1 by Al Ittihad in the Saudi Super Cup semi-final.

Romarinho struck the opener 15 minutes into the contest at the King Fahd International Stadium before Moroccan striker Abderrazak Hamdallah doubled the lead just before half-time.

Anderson Talisca reduced the deficit in the 67th minute but Muhannad Al Shanqeeti sealed the win for Nuno Espirito Santo's side in stoppage time.

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However, Ronaldo did have a huge chance to equalise moments before Hamdallah made it 2-0 to Al Ittihad.

The ball was fizzed into him from a cross and it looked like the five-time Ballon d'Or winner was going to open his account for Al Nassr.

However, he could only direct his header at goalkeeper Marcelo Grohe, who made a fine save.

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Al Ittihad broke but their counter attack was sniffed out and the ball ended up with Ronaldo on the left. However, the 37-year-old lost possession and Hamdallah headed home the second from a Romarinho pick-out.

And after the match, Garcia brought up the Ronaldo chance as a turning point in the game.

"One of the things that changed the course of the match was Cristiano Ronaldo's missed opportunity in the first half," the former Roma and Lyon boss told reporters.

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"I congratulate Al-Ittihad. They presented a much better first half than us, and we played a good second half, but unfortunately we were not able to adjust the result."

To rub salt in the wounds, Ronaldo was subjected to Lionel Messi chants by the opposition supporters.

After a brace for the Riyadh XI in the friendly against Paris Saint-Germain, Ronaldo is still searching for his first goal in his new colours after two blanks.

Al Nassr's next game is in the league against Al Fateh on Friday 3 February.

Featured Image Credit: Alamy

Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Saudi Arabia, Al Nassr, Saudi Pro League

Josh Lawless
Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and WWE. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has covered two WrestleMania events for SPORTbible.

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@joshlawless_

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  • Cristiano Ronaldo 'tells new Al Nassr manager to sign €100m Premier League star' just days after he joins the club
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  • Lionel Messi must follow strict Saudi rule if he joins Al Ahli that Cristiano Ronaldo found 'strange'
  • Cristiano Ronaldo has already been given 'special permission' to break strict Saudi rule as he commits future to Al Nassr

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