Striker Cristiano Ronaldo publicly criticized his teammates in Al Nassr’s 1-4 loss to Al Hilal in the Saudi Arabia Super Cup final early on August 18.
Although Ronaldo opened the scoring for Al Nassr in the 44th minute of the Saudi Arabian Super Cup, his team still let Al Hilal score 4 consecutive goals in just 17 minutes of the second half.
Ronaldo celebrates opening the scoring for Al Nassr in the 44th minute (Photo: Getty).
First, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic scored to level the score at 1-1 for Al Hilal in the 55th minute, before Aleksandar Mitrovic scored twice in the 63rd and 69th minutes to put the Saudi champions 3-1 up. Malcom finally put an end to Al Nassr’s hopes with a goal that sealed a 4-1 victory in the 72nd minute.
Witnessing his team’s easy losses, Ronaldo got angry and continuously clasped his hands together and placed them on one cheek to criticize his teammates for playing like they were sleepwalking.
Ronaldo reacted to his teammates’ sleepy play when Al Hilal scored 4 consecutive goals in the second half (Photo: Getty).
With this victory, Al Hilal won the Super Cup for the second consecutive time and the fifth time in history. They remain the most successful team in the tournament, 3 titles more than Al Nassr.
As for Ronaldo, this is the third consecutive year that CR7 and Al Nassr have lost the Saudi Arabian Super Cup. The Portuguese superstar has yet to win any official titles with this team.
The Portuguese star was so disappointed that he did not even stay after the match to collect his runners-up medal, instead the 39-year-old striker quickly moved down the tunnel back to the dressing room.
Ronaldo’s refusal to accept the medal will result in him being punished by the tournament organizers. In addition to being stripped of the runner-up prize (cash and prizes), the Portuguese star will also be fined 20,000 riyals (more than 133 million VND).
