Al Nassr star Cristiano Ronaldo missed the opportunity to equalize against Al Taawoun from the penalty spot on aggregate time. After losing 1-0, Stefano Pioli’s team is out of the Round of 16 match of the King Cup of Champions.
It wasn’t the night for Ronaldo or Al Nassr, as they struggled to create clear chances to score. Of 15 shots, only five were to target. Meanwhile, Al Taawoun took advantage of one corner kick at the 70th minute mark and with a header, Waleed Al-Ahmed, scored the only goal of the match.
With each passing minute, Ronaldo grew increasingly impatient with his teammates’ mistakes. Just when it seemed all was lost for Pioli’s men, Ashraf El Mahdioui fouled Sultan Al-Ghannam inside the box, presenting the perfect opportunity for the Portuguese star to keep his team’s hopes alive.
However, his shot went high, and with only five minutes remaining, Al Nassr were eliminated from the competition. Last year, they reached the final, where they lost to Al-Hilal on penalties after the match ended 1-1.
Ronaldo misses ❌
On the other hand, Al Nassr is currently third in the Saudi Pro League, behind Al Hilal and Al-Ittihad Club. They are also competing in the AFC Champions League, which is currently in the first phase.
Stefano Pioli reacts to Al Nassr elimination
After the match, Al Nassr coach Stefano Pioli reacted to the elimination, saying that “We feel disappointed to be out of the cup. But we still have two championships and we will give our best in them.”
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Meanwhile, he said that he thinks his team’s performance was “good on a technical level, but not enough to win the match,” as they “lost because we couldn’t score the chances we had. Al Taawoun scored from a corner kick.”
