Cristiano Ronaldo intends to propel Al Nassr into the AFC Champions League Elite last 16 by utilizing his skills.
Cristiano Ronaldo will endeavor to assist Al Nassr in maintaining their unblemished record in the AFC Champions League Elite when the Saudi team faces Al Gharafa in Qatar on Monday.
Al Hilal suffered their first league defeat in 551 days when Jorge Jesus’ team suffered a surprise 3-2 defeat against Al Khaleej in the domestic Saudi Pro League on Saturday, providing Nassr with a lifeline.
It occurred 24 hours after Nassr experienced their own defeat against the promoted Al Qadsiah. After lining up opposite Spanish defender Nacho in Friday’s 2-1 loss, Ronaldo tallied his seventh goal of the season.
Qadsiah was the one who celebrated the final whistle, despite the fact that the two were former longtime colleagues during their time at Real Madrid. Nacho stated, “It was a challenging and unique match against Ronaldo.”
“I had the most enjoyable time of my career playing with him, and he is a friend of mine. However, we are currently playing for different teams and have a distinct experience.” It was a privilege to compete against him.”
Nassr’s title aspirations appeared to have been jeopardized by that defeat; however, Hilal’s first league loss since May 2023 to Khaleej, compounded by Al Ittihad’s 2-0 victory over Al Fateh, enabled the Jeddah club to surpass Hilal and secure the top spot.
It was Hilal’s first domestic loss in 47 contests. Marcos Leonardo, the forward for Hilal, acknowledged, “We were aware that the victories would not persist, as this is football.” “We must strive for success in the upcoming match of the AFC Champions League Elite.”
The Saudi Arabian clubs are currently in the top three positions and have not yet suffered a loss in the western zone of the Asian competition. The 24 teams in the tournament are divided into two groups of 12, with eight from each group advancing to the Round of 16 after playing eight matches.
Nassr is currently in third place with 10 points from four games and will be nearly certain to advance to the next round if they defeat Gharafa. Hilal, the most successful club in Asia with four titles, will also be traveling to Qatar to face Al Sadd, the 2011 champions.
In contrast to SPL events, Neymar is eligible to participate in Asian competitions; however, the Brazilian is still recuperating from the injury he sustained against Esteghlal of Iran in November. Al Ahli, a Jeddah club, is currently in second place and has a perfect record of four victories.
They are scheduled to face the reigning Asian champions, Al Ain. The head coach of the UAE club, Hernan Crespo, was terminated following his team’s 5-4 loss to Hilal and subsequent 5-1 loss to Nassr.
The club is currently at the bottom of the group. Leonardo Jardim, the Portuguese manager who guided Al Hilal to the 2021 continental championship, has succeeded the Argentine.
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