Ronaldo double leads Al-Nassr to 3-1 win at Al-Hilal
Agency :
Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice to help Al-Nassr to a 3-1 win over Al-Hilal on Friday and a first Riyadh derby victory in the Saudi Pro League for over three years.
The Yellows also put a major dent in the title chances of their local rivals, who stay four points behind Al-Ittihad at the top of the table but have now played a game more.
The result also keeps Al-Nassr’s faint championship hopes alive as they are now seven points behind the leaders with eight games of the season remaining.
It was a fierce battle, as is always expected in what is one of Asia’s biggest matches, but it was a deserved win for Al-Nassr.
While Ronaldo’s exploits will take the headlines, the opening goal, which came deep into added time at the end of the first half, was a thing of beauty. Marcelo Brozovic rolled a corner to the edge of the area where the home defense had switched off. There was still a lot of work to do for Ali Al-Hassan but he took one touch and then curled a perfect shot into the top corner to give the visitors the lead in spectacular fashion.
Two minutes after the restart, Ronaldo extended Al-Nassr’s lead with his 20th league goal of the season. Sadio Mane broke free down the left and pulled the ball back for the former Manchester United star inside the area who hooked his shot into the net.
The Al-Nassr fans, who had endured six winless league games in this fixture, went wild, but just after the hour Al-Hilal clawed themselves back into it. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic nodded a corner toward the back post and there was Ali Al-Bulaihi to head home from close range.
The Blues continued to push forward in search of an equalizer, but three minutes from the end Ronaldo secured the win for his side. A handball was given in the box and the 40-year-old scored from the spot, straight down the middle of the goal.
Attention now turns to the Jeddah derby on Saturday and all fans will be wondering whether Al-Ittihad can beat Al-Ahli to move seven points clear at the top.