RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – The agonizing five-year silverware drought is officially over for global icon Cristiano Ronaldo after he blasted a sensational second-half brace to power Al-Nassr to the Saudi Pro League championship.
In a high-octane final-day showdown dripping with tension, Jorge Jesus’ men held their nerves to down a stubborn Damac FC 4-1, successfully fending off bitter rivals Al-Hilal by a razor-thin two-point margin to snatch their first domestic league title since 2019.
Okay News reports that the Riyadh giants entered the clash under immense scrutiny following their crushing 1-0 defeat to Japanese outfit Gamba Osaka in the AFC Champions League 2 final just last weekend. However, former Liverpool ace Sadio Mané settled early jitters in the 35th minute with a bullet header, before Bayern Munich icon Kingsley Coman doubled the advantage early in the second half with a fierce, curling effort into the far corner.
Damac threatened to spoil the party when Morlaye Sylla slotted home a quick-fire penalty, but the 41-year-old Ronaldo stepped up to deliver the definitive knockout blows. The five-time Ballon d’Or winner first stunned the goalkeeper with a wicked, low free-kick from a near-impossible angle near the left touchline, before executing a clinical, close-range finish late in the game to lock down the victory and trigger absolute bedlam in the home stands.
The league triumph marks Ronaldo’s first major piece of official silverware in the Middle East since his seismic move in January 2023, following his last major club honor with Juventus during the 2021 Coppa Italia. Fresh off a blistering 28-goal domestic campaign, the legendary talisman is now set to shift his focus to the global stage, having been named in Roberto Martínez’s Portugal squad for the upcoming 2026 World Cup in North America, where a highly anticipated group-stage opener against the Democratic Republic of Congo awaits on June 17.
