Cristiano Ronaldo booked for furious reaction in third straight goalless game
The Portuguese forward was booked after taking issue with a decision from referee Andris Treimanis in the King’s Cup tie.
Cristiano Ronaldo made an impressive start to his time in Saudi Arabia, scoring eight times in his first five games for Al-Nassr. But the goals have dried up in the last few weeks and the Portuguese superstar reacted angrily after being denied a goal-scoring opportunity on Tuesday.
Al-Nassr were playing Abha in the quarter-finals of the King’s Cup and were leading 2-0 as halftime approached. The ball fell to Ronaldo inside his own half and the forward knocked the ball past his marker to launch an attack.
However as he neared the halfway line referee Andris Treimanis blew the whistle for halftime, ending the Al-Nassr attack and Ronaldo’s hopes of a first half goal.
Ronaldo, always desperate to put his name on the scoresheet, reacted furiously and booted the ball high into the sky. This show of clear dissent was picked up on by Treimanis, who showed the five-time Champions League winner a yellow card.
Dazzling start fades for Cristiano
After his high-profile departure from Manchester United and underwhelming World Cup performance for Portugal, Ronaldo would have been eager to get off to a fast start in the Saudi Pro League.
In his first five league games the former Real Madrid man contributed ten goal involvements (eight goals and two assists) as Al-Nassr picked up 13 points from a possible 15.
However Monday’s 3-1 win over Abha was the third consecutive game in which Ronaldo has failed to either score or assist, a comparative draught for a man who has notched more than 800 goals across his career.
There were signs of frustration brewing in the game before when Al-Nassr fell to defeat against Al-Ittihad Club. Ronaldo was subject to ‘Messi’ chants throughout the crucial league match and reacted poorly to the 1-0 loss.
The Portuguese forward finished the game as captain but furiously ripped off his armband on the full-time whistle, kicking out at a water bottle on the ground. Ronaldo’s winning mentality was praised by the club when his signing was announced but they are starting to see the other side of his famous competitive instinct.