Cristiano Ronaldo’s Goal Propels Al Nassr to Victory in 2023-2024 Arab Club Champions Cup
In the 2023-2024 season, Cristiano Ronaldo marked his first goal for Al Nassr in spectacular fashion, leading the team to a 4-1 victory against Monastir in the Arab Club Champions Cup group stage.
Ronaldo’s moment of brilliance came in the 74th minute, as he rose high above the defenders to meet Khalid Al Ghannam’s pinpoint cross with a powerful trademark header. After the goal, the Portuguese striker rushed to the technical area, embracing and celebrating with the coaching staff and head coach Luis Castro.
This goal was Ronaldo’s first of the new season, breaking his two-month goal drought since the Saudi Pro League 2022-2023 match against Al Shabab on May 23, where Al Nassr secured a thrilling 3-2 victory. The Portuguese star also failed to score during the pre-season friendlies, making this goal a moment of relief and release of pressure for him.
The triumph against Monastir propelled Al Nassr to the top of Group C with four points from two matches, tied with Al Shabab but ahead on goal difference. In their opening match on July 29, Al Nassr played out a goalless draw against Al-Shabab. Next, on August 3, Ronaldo and his teammates will face Egyptian club Zamalek in their final group stage match.
Al Nassr demonstrated their superiority over their Tunisian counterparts, Monastir, with an impressive display of strength. They initially took the lead with a goal from Brazilian striker Anderson Talisca just before half-time.
Despite being pegged back by an unfortunate own goal by Ali Lajami in the 66th minute, Ronaldo swiftly put Al Nassr back in front. Late goals from Abdulelah Al-Amri and Abdulaziz Al-Elewai sealed a convincing 4-1 victory for the Saudi Pro League runners-up.
The Arab Club Champions Cup is an annual tournament for Arab clubs, hosted in Saudi Arabia in 2023, bringing together 37 teams under the management of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF). The competition follows a format similar to the Champions League, with two qualifying rounds to select six teams. Alongside ten seeded teams, they are divided into four groups, playing a round-robin format to determine the top two teams from each group, advancing to the knockout stages for quarterfinals, semifinals, and the final showdown.
