Cristiano Ronaldo and Joao Felix were on target as Al-Nassr comfortably thrashed Neom 3-1 to extend their lead over Al-Taawoun to three points at the top of the Saudi Pro League table. After a quiet second half, the floodgates opened with Gabriel's powerful shot before the Portuguese icon doubled the lead. Felix then scored the final goal to seal a memorable win for the Saudi giants.
Al-Nassr's eighth consecutive win
Al-Nassr and Neom played out an exciting first half, albeit goalless, as both teams had numerous chances to break the deadlock. Al-Nassr, of course, dominated proceedings with each of Ronaldo, Joao Felix and Sadio Mane coming close to opening their account in the game but they failed to keep the ball inside the goal.
Ronaldo possibly squandered the easiest chance of the half as he failed to keep his header on target from close range. Mane too missed a simple opportunity after miskicking the ball when inside the box.
The Saudi giants, though, did not take much time in the second half to open their scoring as in-form midfielder and ex-Chelsea star Angelo Gabriel broke the deadlock with a picture-perfect finish. In the 48th minute, Ronaldo took a free-kick from just outside the box, which was blocked by the Neom defenders but from the rebound, Gabriel scored with a brilliant grounded shot.
Just seven minutes later, Neom were dealt another blow as striker Luciano Rodríguez was given his marching orders for a reckless challenge. The Uruguayan attacker was taking his position on the edge of the box to meet a cross from the left side when he intentionally elbowed an Al-Nassr player in the neck. The referee consulted the VAR before brandishing a red card. It was indeed a massive blow for Neom as they had already lost ex-Arsenal star Alexandre Lacazette in the first half due to injury.
Ronaldo soon completed his 953rd career goal after finding the back of the net from the penalty spot. In the earlier move, Ronaldo had seen his attempt saved from close range by compatriot Luis Maximiano but Joao Felix chased the second ball. The Portuguese forward tried to regain possession, but he was shoved from behind, which led to the spot-kick.
Ahmed Abdo pulled one back for the hosts in the 84th minute as Mohamed Simakan was caught napping. Abdo received the ball behind Simakan and comfortably placed it into the goal. Neom's celebrations were, however, short-lived as Joao Felix scored the third and final goal of the game to secure crucial three points.
AdvertisementgettyThe MVP
Ronaldo was once again on target as Al-Nassr extended their winning streak in the Saudi Pro League to eight games. The 40-year-old veteran star displayed a lively performance throughout the 90 minutes and also scored the team's crucial second goal from a spot-kick.
The big loser
Uruguayan striker Rodríguez was the main villain for Neom tonight as his reckless behaviour on the pitch led to his team being reduced to 10 men. Up until the sending off, Neom were fighting tooth and nail against the giants of the league, but his red card completely changed the complexion of the game. Rodriguez should have kept in mind that he was the team's last attacker for the night, especially after Lacazette's injury.
Getty Images SportMatch rating (out of five): ⭐⭐⭐
