Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mane each scored for the fourth successive game to help Al-Nassr to a fourth straight victory in the Saudi Pro League at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Buraydah on Saturday..
Mane netted from 18 yards in first-half stoppage-time to put the visitors ahead at 10-man Al-Raed, while Ronaldo’s fine solo run and finish sealed a 3-1 win. Ronaldo leads the league’s goal charts on seven with Mane one behind on six. Mane, pounced on a loose ball to find the left-bottom corner with a bullet of a hit from the edge of the penalty box.
Seconds later, a foul on him saw Bander Whaeshi get marching orders as the hosts were reduced to 10 men before the half-time whistle. The second half saw Al Nassr exploit the numerical advantage, with Anderson Talisca – who had scored a hat-trick against the same team in December last year – coming on as a substitute. He made an instant impact, scoring a screamer from outside the box, four minutes after the break.
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He continues to pull strings in attack and 30 minutes later, he set up Ronaldo in the box, who nutmegged his marker and rattles the net with his hit. The win took the visitors up to fifth in the league, with Al Raeed down at 15th. Ronaldo will now start his AFC Champions League 2023-24 campaign, with the team playing Iranian side, Persepolis on September 19.
Elsewhere in the league, ex-Newcastle forward Allan Saint-Maximin hit the winner as Al-Ahli beat Al-Taawon 3-2. Former Celtic striker Moussa Dembele was also on target on Saturday as Al-Ettifaq, the club managed by Steven Gerrard, won 3-1 at Abha.