Cristiano Ronaldo runs riot as Pitso Mosimane suffers heaviest defeat
Cristiano Ronaldo turned on the style on Tuesday night, scoring a scintillating hat trick to lead Al Nassr to a crushing 8-0 victory over a Pitso Mosimane’s Abha Club.
The Portuguese superstar was unplayable at the Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium, leaving Mosimane’s tactics in tatters and marking his heaviest defeat as a coach.
The match was a one-sided affair from the outset, with the 5-time Ballon d’Or winner pulling the strings for his team. His first goal came in the 11th minute, a trademark thunderbolt from outside the area that left the goalkeeper with no chance. He continued to torment the defense throughout the half, adding another goal halfway through the game.
The former Manchester United forward completed his hat trick in the 42nd minute. Undoubtedly, the defeat dents Abha’s hopes of saving their Saudi Pro League status, with eight games remaining before the season ends.
Their last meeting was in October 2023 and it ended in a 2-2 stalemate. But this time, it was a different affair, miserable for the ex-Mamelodi Sundowns coach.
Former Liverpool FC star Sadio Mane scored Al Nassr’s third goal after 33 minutes, putting the game well beyond Abha.
CRISTIANO RONALDO SCORES 65TH CAREER HATTRICK AGAINST PITSO MOSIMANE’S CLUB
Having struck a hat-trick against Al-Tai last week, ‘CR7’ further solidified his reputation as one of the greatest goalscorers of all time. This was his 65th career hat-trick. Al Nassr were relentless and they scored their fifth goal on the stroke of half-time through Abdulmajeed Al-Sulaiheem.
Abdullah Ghareeb and Abdulaziz Al-Aliwa got the sixth and seventh goal on the 51st and 63rd minute respectively. Aliwa got his second goal of the match on the 86th minute.
WHERE ABHA CLUB STAND IN THE SAUDI PRO LEAGUE
Al Nassr remain second on the table, 12 points behind leader Al Hilal while Abha are stuck on 17th position. They have a paltry 22 points on their tally after 26 matches. However they retain their six-point gap ahead of bottom-placed Al Hazm.
Moreso, before the heavy defeat, Abha were held to a 1-1 draw by Knowledge Musona’s Al Riyadh away from home. Under Mosimane, Abha Club have now played seven games where they won twice, drawing twice, and losing three times.
This translates to eight points out of a possible 21. At this rate of dropping points, relegation could inevitable. The next four games will be key in ensuring their safety. They are faced with tricky fixtures against Al Fateh, Al Shabab, Al Akhoud and Al Ittihad respectively.
RELATED STORY:Another tough test for Pitso Mosimane as he faces a 5-time Ballon d’Or winner