Veteran Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo scored one goal and contributed to creating another, leading his team Al-Nassr to an exciting victory over Al-Faisaly 3-1 in the 11th round of the Saudi Professional League.
Abdullah Al-Hamdan gave Al-Nasr an early lead after 4 minutes of play, after he fired a low shot from outside the penalty area that landed in the far corner.
Captain Ronaldo added the second goal with a header after a free kick executed by his Portuguese compatriot Joao Felix 4 minutes after the end of the break. Theo Bongonda reduced the deficit for the home team with a header after more than an hour of play. Angelo restored Al-Nasr's two-goal lead with a direct shot from inside the penalty area in the 79th minute after receiving a ready ball from his colleague Al-Hamdan following Ronaldo's cross.
Al-Nasr raised its score to 25 points from 10 matches, lagging behind leaders Al-Qadisiyah on goal difference. Al-Faisaly's balance froze at 7 points in 15th place.
Al-Ahly Club announced that its Turkish international defender, Merih Demiral, suffered a foot joint injury during the training session conducted by the team on Thursday evening, and thus he was absent from facing Al-Khaleej in the Saudi Professional League competitions.
Al-Ahly explained, in an official medical statement, that Demiral underwent the necessary medical examinations that determined the nature of the injury, and on Friday he began his treatment program in accordance with the plan drawn up by the team’s medical staff.
The club did not reveal the expected length of the Turkish defender’s absence or the date of his return to group training, at a time when his injury represents a blow to the defensive options of the technical staff, given his status as one of the main elements in the team’s back line.
The technical staff is awaiting developments in Demiral’s medical condition in the coming days, to determine the possibility of his participation in the upcoming benefits.
The players of the Saudi athletics team continued their presence on the podiums in the Fifth Asian Paralympic Games “Nagoya 2026”, after Badr bin Ali snatched the gold medal in the shot put competition, achieving a new Asian record, while his colleague Nour Al-Sanaa won the silver medal in the 400 meters race, adding two new achievements to the Saudi participation in the tournament.
Badr bin Ali succeeded in topping the podium in first place in the shot put competitions in the “F20” category, after recording a distance of 17.08 metres, breaking the Asian record, to combine the gold medal with the digital achievement in the same competition.
The Saudi achievement in athletics competitions came after Ben Ali outperformed his competitors and took the top spot in the standings, confirming his presence in one of the most prominent track and field competitions, and awarding the Saudi team a gold medal with additional value by setting a new continental record.
In the track competitions, Nour Al-Sanaa added the silver medal to the Saudi team’s tally, after finishing second in the 400-meter race in the “T64” category, recording a time of 53.13 seconds.
The makers were able to finish the race in second place, climbing to the podium and winning a new Asian silver in the athletics competitions.
The coronation ceremony witnessed the Saudi players ascending to the gold and silver podiums, in attendance that reflects the results of the Saudi team in the field and track competitions within the continental tournament.
Badr bin Ali's gold medal is of special importance. Because it was coupled with breaking the Asian record in the shot put, while Nour Al Sanaa’s silver strengthened the Saudi presence in track races, the two players concluded their participation with two outstanding results in the “Nagoya 2026” tournament.
Indian Sandeep excelled in the 400-meter race by clocking 52.28 seconds, setting a world record, 0.85 seconds ahead of Al-Sanaa, while Indian Ajay Kumar came third with a time of 53.61 seconds, completing the ranking of the three medalists.
The two medals come as an extension of Saudi Arabia’s results in the tournament hosted by Japan until October 24, after the previous days’ competitions witnessed the crowning of Ali Al-Nakhli with the gold in the 100-meter race in the T37 category, and Thamer Al-Zahrani with the gold in the 400-meter race in the same category.
