Ronaldo left frustrated as Al Nassr suffer first defeat of the season

Ronaldo left frustrated as Al Nassr suffer first defeat of the season

Last updated: September 06, 2026 | 00:36

Shamseer Mohammed, Staff Writer

Cristiano Ronaldo and Al Nassr's perfect start to the Saudi Pro League season is over.

Ange Postecoglou's side suffered their first defeat of the campaign on Saturday, losing 2-1 to Al Ittihad in Jeddah after George Ilenikhena scored twice for the hosts.

Al Nassr had arrived with four wins from four and 12 points, but they found themselves behind after only four minutes when Ilenikhena punished a poor defensive clearance.

Things got even worse in the 22nd minute when the 20 year old Nigerian struck again to make it 2-0. Angelo Gabriel pulled one back before half time, giving Al Nassr plenty of time to find a way back into the contest. Ronaldo was involved in the build up of that goal.

But this time there was no comeback.

Ronaldo tries the spectacular

Ronaldo certainly tried.

At 41, we have already seen him score some ridiculous overhead kicks, and he attempted another against Al Ittihad. This one, however, was asking a little too much even from Ronaldo.

The ball was simply too high for him to make proper contact, and the spectacular attempt came to nothing. He also had a chance to score in the second half but his shot went straight to the keeper, who parried it away.

It summed up a frustrating evening for the Portuguese star, who could not add to his 978 career goals as Al Nassr searched for an equaliser. Ronaldo had chances, but Al Ittihad held firm to hand Postecoglou his first league defeat of the season.

Ronaldo wants to know what is on the note

There was also a rather funny Ronaldo moment during the game.

Al Ittihad manager Jens Wissing sent tactical instructions onto the pitch on a piece of paper for Danilo Pereira.

Ronaldo clearly wanted to know what the opposition were planning.

As Danilo looked at the note, Ronaldo could be seen trying to sneak a peek at what was written on it, producing one of the more amusing moments of an otherwise difficult night for the Al Nassr captain.

The defeat leaves Al Nassr on 12 points from five matches, while defending champions Al Hilal have made a perfect start with 15 points from five. Al Ittihad, meanwhile, remain unbeaten after moving on to 11 points.

It is only the first defeat of a long season, but after four straight victories, this was the first real setback of the Postecoglou era.

From code to kick-off: Gulf News’ Mohammed Shamsheer spends his weekdays in DevOps and weekends watching football — a proud Chelsea supporter through and through.

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