Sports

Ronaldo in tears after Saudi King’s Cup final defeat

Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo broke down tears after Al Nassr lost the King’s Cup final to Al Hilal on penalties on Friday night.

The club’s loss extended Ronaldo’s trophy drought in Saudi Arabia.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner, whose arrival last year unleashed a flood of top players to the oil-funded Saudi Pro League, slumped to the ground as Al Hilal celebrated winning the King’s Cup.

Ronaldo, 39, then slowly walked off the pitch and sat in the dug-out with tears streaming down his face.

In a tempestuous match that saw three red cards, including one for Al Nassr’s ex-Arsenal goalkeeper David Ospina, Ayman Yahya scored in the 88th minute to cancel out Al Hilal’s early strike through Aleksandar Mitrovic.

Ronaldo breaks Saudi league scoring record

But Al Hilal triumphed 5-4 in the shoot-out to complete the Saudi treble after also winning the Super Cup and the Saudi Pro League, finishing unbeaten in domestic action.

This season Al Hilal, with star signing Neymar injured since October, put together a record 34-match winning streak in all competitions.

Al Nassr, who were second in the league behind Al Hilal, and lost to the same team in the Super Cup, miss out once again despite the prolific Ronaldo, who scored a Pro League-record 35 goals.

His sole silverware so far with the Riyadh club is last year’s Arab Club Champions Cup.

Ronaldo’s contract, said to net him 400 million euros over two-and-a-half years, runs out at the end of next season.

The Star

Segun Ojo

Recent Posts

Good destroyed as fire guts Anambra shops on Christmas day

Fire, in the early hours of Wednesday, December 25, 2024, gutted some shops near the…

2 hours ago

NiMet forecasts 3-day dust haze from Thursday

The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has predicted dust haze across the country from Thursday to…

2 hours ago

22 injured as car rams into Christian procession

No fewer than 22 persons have been injured after a car rammed into a Christian…

2 hours ago

Bishop Odedeji: Jesus birth, most remarkable event in human history

The Anglican Bishop of the diocese of Lagos West The Rt. Rev James Olusola Odedeji…

17 hours ago

Christmas: Let’s be instruments of peace, Uba Sani urges Christians

Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani has felicitated Christians in the state, urging them and other…

1 day ago

Zenith Bank, Int’l Breweries, NNPC, Others Shine at 2024 SERAS Awards

It was a night of glitz, glamour and celebration at the 18th edition of the…

2 days ago

This website uses cookies.