Cristiano Ronaldo sent off for Al-Nassr in Saudi Super Cup defeat to Al-Hilal

SourceBBC

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Al-Nassr forward Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off for elbowing an opponent during his side’s 2-1 Saudi Super Cup semi-final defeat by Al-Hilal.

Ronaldo, 39, was shown a straight red card on 86 minutes after appearing to swing his elbow twice into the chest of Ali Al Bulayhi, who fell to the floor.

The Portugal international then appeared to raise his first towards the referee before leaving the field.

It is Ronaldo’s first red card since his move to Al-Nassr in December 2022.

Al-Nassr were trailing 2-0 at that stage after goals from Salem Al-Dawsari and Malcom, with former Liverpool forward Sadio Mane pulling one back in stoppage time.

Three-time winners Al-Hilal will play Al-Ittihad in the final on Thursday.

Al-Ittihad beat Al-Wehda 2-1 in their semi-final earlier on Monday thanks to goals from former Real Madrid captain Karim Benzema and Morocco forward Abderrazak Hamdallah.

Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal players in a melee following Cristiano Ronaldo's clash with Ali Al Bulayhi
Ronaldo’s (far right) clash with Ali Al Bulayhi sparked a melee involving both sets of players
Cristiano Ronaldo giving a thumbs up towards the crowd as he walks off the pitch
Ronaldo sarcastically applauded the referee and gave a thumbs up to the crowd as he walked off the pitch