Al Nassr beat Al Kholood 5-3 in the 12th round of the Saudi league on Thursday, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring a hat-trick. The win moved Al Nassr onto 28 points and sent them temporarily top of the table, level on points with Al Qadsiah.
How the match unfolded
Joao Felix and Ronaldo formed Al Nassr's attacking duo, as usual, while Samu Costa was left out of the matchday squad through suspension. Ronaldo had a 10th-minute goal ruled out for offside against Abdullah Al Hamdan, who provided the assist. Al Kholood went ahead in the 16th minute when Abdulrahmen Al Dawsari set up Julien Domingues.
Angelo made it 1-1 in the 24th minute after combining with Joao Felix. Sadio Mane made it 2-1 in the 38th minute, with Joao Felix providing the assist unintentionally. Al Kholood made it 2-2 in the second minute of stoppage time, with Julien Domingues setting up Loic Essomba. Ronaldo then had another goal ruled out right on the half-time whistle.
Second-half turning points
Joao Felix was booked early in the second half. Shaquille Pinas went off injured in the 54th minute, with Abdulrahman Al Obaid coming on. Ronaldo scored in the 66th minute after Joao Felix laid the ball off to give Al Nassr a 3-2 lead.
Ronaldo scored again in the 72nd minute with another assist from Joao Felix, which was his fourth assist of the match. Ronaldo completed his hat-trick in the 81st minute after Mane laid the ball off for him to finish. Julien Domingues converted a stoppage-time penalty for Al Kholood after a VAR review.
Table position
The victory took Al Nassr to 28 points and temporarily sent them top of the table, level on points with Al Qadsiah. Al Hilal have 27 points and a game in hand.
Ronaldo milestone chase
Ronaldo needs 15 more goals to reach the 1000-goal milestone in his career.
