Al-Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off late on as his side lost 2-1 to city rivals Al-Hilal in their Saudi Super Cup semi-final after a heated clash in Abu Dhabi on Monday.
Cristiano Ronaldo © X
Al-Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off late on as his side lost 2-1 to city rivals Al-Hilal in their Saudi Super Cup semi-final after a heated clash in Abu Dhabi on Monday.
Portugal's record scorer was shown a straight red card four minutes from time for elbowing an opponent when his side were 2-0 down before they scored a late consolation.
Jorge Jesus' Al-Hilal opened the scoring in the 62nd minute when Salem Al-Dawsari slotted the ball into the bottom right corner from a Sergej Milinkovic-Savic flick after a quick break.
Brazilian forward Malcolm doubled the lead in the 72nd with a fine header after Michael's long cross from the right found his compatriot unmarked in the centre of the box.
Former Liverpool forward Sadio Mane got Al-Nassr on the scoresheet in stoppage time off Abdulrahman Ghareeb's pass.
Al-Hilal will seek a record-extending fourth title in Thursday's final when they face Karim Benzema's Al-Ittihad, who beat Al-Wehda 2-1 in the earlier semi-final on Monday.
Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios
Pakistan has deployed 8,000 troops, a squadron of fighter jets and an air defence system to Saudi Arabia under a mutual defence pact, ramping up military cooperation with Riyadh even as Islamabad serves as the main mediator in the Iran war.
A drone strike caused a fire at a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates, officials there said on Sunday, while Saudi Arabia reported intercepting three drones, as U.S. President Donald Trump warned that Iran must act "fast" after efforts to end the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran appeared to have stalled.
FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström called Saturday's meeting with the Iranian Football Federation in Istanbul "very constructive." He said he couldn't wait to welcome the Islamic Republic of Iran to the World Cup.
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