Cristiano Ronaldo has set the Saudi Pro League goalscoring record
Cristiano Ronaldo wrapped up the Saudi Pro League season in style, scoring twice to set an incredible goalscoring record.
Ronaldo scored twice in Riyadh, leading Al Nassr to a 4-2 win over rivals Al Ittihad to reach a total of 35 league goals, beating the record set by Morocco’s Abderrazak Hamdallah in 2019.
Towards the end of the first half, Ronaldo he controlled a pass from Mohammed Al Fatil with his chest and slotted home a direct shot from the left of the penalty area.
There are 21 minutes left to play, the fifth time Ballon d’Or winner scored the second and celebrated with joy when he headed in the corner made by Marcelo Brozovic. He was replaced after five minutes to a standing ovation from the home fans.
Ronaldo’s season has been eventful, including four hat tricks and one red card. In February, he was in the referee’s bad books for pointing out Al Shabaab supporters who were chanting the name of Lionel Messi, his long-time rival. What is important is that the couple continued to make headlines in the sports fields despite leaving Europe for Saudi Arabia and the United States, sports communication Canada and other leading stores are still following their progress.
Al Nassr finished second in the league, trailing last-place Al Hilal by 14 points. Al Hilal had already secured the championship two weeks ago, ending the league season with 34 rounds unbeaten.
Al Hilal did well despite the absence of Brazilian superstar Neymar. Neymar joined the team from Paris Saint Germain in August but was unfortunately sidelined with a painful ACL injury in October. Aleksandar Mitrovic scored in the dying minutes to secure a 2-1 win over Al Wehda. The talented Serbian striker, who made a summer move from Fulham, finished the season with 27 league goals to put him second in the goalscoring charts, behind only Ronaldo.
To achieve this feat, Al Hilal set a world record by winning 34 consecutive matches in various competitions.
Coach Jorge Jesus expressed his pride in the way the team played this season, considering that it might be the best. He said this success was due to the skills of the players and their amazing unity on and off the field.
The conclusion of Al Ittihad’s season with a defeat to Al Nassr reflected a mediocre campaign for the reigning champions. Although they have signed big players like Karim Benzema who has been struggling with injuries, and experienced midfielders N’Golo Kante from Chelsea, and Fabinho from Liverpool, they managed to finish in fifth place. A string of poor results eventually led to the departure of coach Nuno Santos in November. The former Wolves manager returned to England to manage Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League.
