Riyadh (Newsman): As Qatar’s Al Sadd defeated already-qualified Al Nassr 2-1 in injury time on Monday, Cristiano Ronaldo watched from the stands as Al Nassr suffered their first loss in this year’s Asian Champions League (ACL) Elite.
According to reports, the 39-year-old Portuguese player was rested for the match in Riyadh since the Saudi team had already guaranteed their spot in the knockout stages last week, with three rounds of the group round left.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner scored twice in the Saudi Pro League on Friday after scoring twice against Al Gharafa, another Qatari team, the previous time out.
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Stefano Pioli did not include the Al Nassr skipper in his matchday team for the Al Sadd visit.
Ronaldo, who has 15 goals in 18 club games this season, was seated with his partner Georgina Rodriguez and mother Dolores Aveiro at Al Awwal Park.
Akram Afif, the current AFC Player of the Year, gave Al Sadd the lead eight minutes into the second half when he sprinted from the halfway line onto a long pass.
Afif finished just ahead of Brazil’s goalie Bento, surpassing defender Mohammed Al Fatil.
When Romain Saiss, a defender for Al Sadd, turned Brazilian teenager Wesley’s low cross into his own goal, Al Nassr pulled even at 80 minutes.
Nevertheless, Al Nassr would suffer a severe setback when Adam Ounas, a replacement, scored from the penalty spot in the 99th minute after Afif was tripped within the home team’s penalty area.
Al Sadd moves up to fourth place and secures a berth in the round of 16, while Al Nassr remains third in the Western Region group stage after the loss. The top eight teams advance to the next round.
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Even though they gave up their perfect record in this year’s tournament, fellow Saudi team Al Ahli is still in first place after an Ivan Toney double helped them draw 2-2 with Iran’s Esteghlal in Jeddah.
After his double against Asian champions Al Ain last week, it was Toney’s second straight Champions League Elite encounter in which he scored twice.