Cristiano Ronaldo’s team, Al Nassr, faces a challenging task in the Arab Club Champions Cup final against their rivals Al Hilal.
Despite reaching the final, Al Nassr has a weak head-to-head record against Al Hilal in recent encounters.
Cristiano Ronaldo played a pivotal role in securing Al Nassr’s spot in the final by scoring the only goal in a 1-0 victory over Al Shorta in the semi-finals. The final match against Al Hilal is scheduled for August 13 at 1:00.
While the Al Nassr vs Al Hilal final is highly anticipated, Al Nassr’s recent record against Al Hilal raises concerns. In the last ten confrontations, Al Nassr has lost six matches, drawn one, and won three. In their most recent meeting on April 19, Al Nassr suffered a 0-2 defeat to Al Hilal, with Cristiano Ronaldo performing below expectations.
On their journey to the final, Al Hilal has displayed impressive performance, eliminating Al Itihad in the quarterfinals and defeating Al Shabab 3-1 in the semi-finals despite being down to ten men from the 25th minute.
Al Hilal boasts a slightly stronger squad than Al Nassr, with key players like Kalidou Koulibaly in midfield, Ruben Neves as a central midfielder, Milinkovic-Savic as an attacking midfielder, and Malcom as a striker. The Saudi Arabian team also features notable players such as Saud Abdulhamid, Mohamed Kanno, Yasser Alshahrani, and Salem Al Dawsari, who scored a crucial goal against Argentina in the 2022 World Cup.
However, Al Hilal will face a challenge in the final, as goalkeeper Abdullah Al Mayouf received a red card in the semi-final against Al Shabab and will be suspended for the championship match against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr.
