Al Nassr 2-1 Al Fayha: Ronaldo scores brace with penalty winner in stoppage time

Cristiano Ronadlo netted a clinical double to inspire Al-Nassr to a 2-1 comeback win against Al-Fayha in the Saudi Pro League on Saturday.

Match Report

Al-Nassr found themselves behind 13 minutes in as Jason and Mohammed Al-Baqawi combined to put Al-Fayha ahead at Al-Awwal Park.

But the hosts went into the break level courtesy of a clinical Ronaldo finish from inside the six-yard box, following a threaded Kingsley Coman through-ball.

Ronaldo continued to push his side forward but was held at bay by a firm Al-Fayha defence until deep into stoppage time, when Abdulelah Al-Amri was brought down inside the box by Mikel Villanueva.

The penalty was awarded following a lengthy VAR review, taking the game into 15 minutes of stoppage time, and Ronaldo powerfully dispatched the spot-kick into the roof of the net.

Elsewhere, the 10 men of Al-Ittihad secured a thrilling 4-4 draw with Al-Khaleej, fighting back from 4-0 down despite seeing former Liverpool midfielder Fabinho sent off.

Al-Khaleej took an early lead as Konstantinos Fortounis provided a sign of things to come, setting up Joshua King in the 14th minute.

Fortounis then turned goalscorer himself four minutes later, before Fabinho was shown a straight red card for a reckless foul in the 32nd minute, leaving Al-Ittihad to play over an hour, including stoppage time, one man down.

Fortounis made full use of Al-Khaleej’s numerical advantage, adding a third from 12 yards out before the break to leave the visitors with a mountain to climb.

King and Fortounis combined once again to seemingly end the match as a contest early in the second half, before Sergio Conceicao’s side began their fightback as Houssem Aouar teed up Moussa Diaby in the 51st minute.

Diaby added a second in the 86th minute before Mario Mitaj and Faisal Al-Ghamdi created stoppage-time havoc, adding two goals inside the final nine minutes to rescue a point.

Al-Qadisiyah fell to a 2-0 defeat to Al-Taawoun as well, with goals from Waleed Al-Ahmed and Angelo Fulgini keeping Michel’s side in fourth place.

Al-Nassr extended their lead at the top of the table following their win, while Al-Ittihad are left with some work to do in eighth place.

Data Debrief: Al-Nassr extend incredible scoring run

Following Ronaldo’s heroics, Al-Nassr have now scored in their last 60 games in the Saudi Pro League – their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since at least 2011-2012.

It was a cagey affair at Al-Awwal Park, with the hosts making the most of their 0.71 expected goals (xG), while Al-Fayha produced a respectable 0.63 xG in response.

And though Al-Ittihad produced a stunning comeback to earn a point elsewhere on Saturday, they have now failed to win any of their last four games in the Saudi Pro League, their longest such streak since an identical run between April and May 2024.

Match Events

0' The match is about to start!

6' Match Event for Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

12' GOAL! Al Nassr FC 0-1 Al Fayha (Jason Remeseiro)

20' Highlight from Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

34' Match Event for Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

37' GOAL! Al Nassr FC 1-1 Al Fayha (Cristiano Ronaldo)

41' Highlight from Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

63' Highlight from Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

66' Match Event for Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

70' Highlight from Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

83' Match Event for Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

90' Match Event for Al Nassr FC vs Al Fayha

104' Penalty Goal! Al Nassr FC  Al Fayha (Cristiano Ronaldo)

Line-ups

Al Nassr FC XI: Ronaldo, Brozovic, I. Martinez, Mane, Coman, Sultan Al-Ghannam, Felix, Abdulelah Al-Amri, Nawaf Al-Boushal, Nawaf Al-Aqidi, Ângelo

Subs: Abdullah Alkhaibari, Raghed Al-Najjar, Abdulrahman Ghareeb, Haroune Camara, Ali Al-Hassan, Nader Al-Sharari, Mohammed Marran, Salem Al Najdi, Wesley

Al Fayha XI: Smalling, Benzia, Mikel Villanueva, Jason, Orlando Mosquera, Mohammed Al-Baqawi, Alfa Semedo, Fashion Sakala, Ahmed Bamsaud, Nawaf Al-Harthi, Rayan Enad

Subs: Ganvoula, Ziyad Al-Sahafi, Mansor Al-Beshe, Malek Al-Abdulmenem, Rakan Kaabi, Ammar Al-Khaibari, Abdulrahman Al-Anazi, Khaled Al-Rammah, Sattam Al-Shammari