Ronaldo fumes as referee denies penalty in Al-Nassr’s AFC Champions League win | Football News
Al Nassr did secure a thrilling 4-2 win against Shabab Al Ahli in their AFC Champions League qualifying match but Cristiano Ronaldo was left fuming over some of the decisions made by the match officials. Ronaldo left the field angrily at halftime at the Mrsool Park in Riyadh. The Portuguese goal machine was seen furiously gesturing to the match officials during the interval. He was reportedly heard screaming angrily, “Wake up.” While making his way into the dugout, the former Real Madrid goal scorer even shockingly pushed a man trying to take a selfie with him. The game against Shabab Al Ahli marked Ronaldo’s debut in the AFC Champions League.
Ronaldo was left frustrated after the match referee rejected Al Nassr’s penalty appeal in the first half against Shabab Al Ahli. Al Nassr were denied a penalty after Ronaldo’s incredible overhead kick was handled by the opposition defender. Ronaldo and his teammates asked for a spot-kick but the match referee was unmoved. The second penalty appeal from the Al Nassr camp also failed to convince the match officials. It was Ronaldo once again who found himself in the spotlight. After making his way into the penalty box, the former Manchester United player was tackled by a Shabab Al Ahli defender. It looked a bit clumsy but the match referee felt that the challenge was quite fair.
It was a frustrating outing for Ronaldo who failed to register his name on the scoresheet. Al Nassr, however, succeeded in getting the better of their opponents last night. The Saudi scripted a praiseworthy comeback to qualify for the Asian Champions League group stage.
Al Nassr scored the first goal of the match after Anderson Talisca found the back of the net in the 11th minute. The UAE champions scored an equaliser just seven minutes later. Shabab Al Ahli earned a lead for the first time in the game just a minute after halftime. Their lead, however, did not last long after Al Nassr full-back Sultan Al Ghannam brought his side back into the contest. Brazilian Talisca scored once again for Al Nassr five minutes into the seven minutes of injury time. Just minutes later, Ronaldo set up a terrific ball for Marcelo Brozovic who struck a low shot from the edge of the penalty area to earn an insurance goal for Al Nassr.
The thrilling AFC Champions League win helped Al Nassr to move into the group phase, scheduled to begin next month. Uzbek outfit Navbahor also reached the next round of the competition with a 1-0 win against Al Wakrah from Qatar.
