Cristiano Ronaldo rages against referee, crowd and Jordan Henderson in chaotic King Cup tie

Cristiano Ronaldo unleashed his fury at the referee, the crowd, and opposing captain Jordan Henderson in a heated and highly-contested King Cup of Champions round-of-16 match between Al-Nassr and Al-Ettifaq. Both teams were reduced to 10 players by the end of the game.

Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr emerged victorious with a 1-0 win, thanks to Sadio Mane’s decisive goal in extra time. However, the 38-year-old Portuguese forward was left seething after a series of contentious decisions by the officials.

The crowd taunted Ronaldo with chants of “Messi!” following Lionel Messi’s triumph at the Ballon d’Or ceremony on Monday night. In response, Ronaldo silenced the crowd with a gesture of his finger on his lips.

Ronaldo demanded the substitution of Chilean referee Piero Maza when he was judged offside, resulting in the disallowed goal scored by his teammate Talisca in the first half. Towards the end of the second half, Talisca was sent off after VAR intervened and upgraded a yellow card for an elbow to the face of an opponent.

Al-Ettifaq also had a player, Ali Hazazi, red carded for a dangerous tackle, which ignited a brawl between both teams.

Although Ronaldo was shown a yellow card for dissent, he avoided a second booking despite his enraged state. After the final whistle, Ronaldo vented his anger by gesturing and exchanging stern words with Henderson, the Al-Ettifaq captain, who attempted to calm the situation.

This is not the first time Ronaldo has displayed his temper since moving to Saudi Arabia. In a match against Shabab Al-Ahli in the Asian Champions League in August, he screamed at the referee, shoved a fan taking a selfie, and stormed off the pitch in frustration after a spectacular bicycle kick was blocked by a defender’s hand, and he was not awarded a penalty. Despite the setback, Ronaldo’s team managed to come back and secure a 4-2 victory.

In other news, Ronaldo’s teammate Alex Telles recently revealed that it was the Portugal star who convinced him to leave Manchester United and join Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League. Telles, who won the Europa League last season while on loan at Sevilla, signed a contract until 2025 with Al-Nassr in July.

“When Al-Nassr approached me for the first time, I reached out to Cristiano and he encouraged me to come join him,” Telles shared in an interview on messaging platform X. “Undoubtedly, Cristiano continues to evolve, and his experience grows every day. Just look at the number of goals he scores. I may be biased when I talk about him due to the records he has broken, but I was fortunate to play with him at Manchester United and now at Al-Nassr. He remains a decisive player and a great leader who takes responsibility in the dressing room, helps everyone, and fosters a positive atmosphere.”

Currently, Al-Nassr ranks second in the league table with 25 points, trailing leaders Al-Hilal by four points.

Reference

Michael Johnson

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