Ronaldo scores 54th goal of the year in Al Nassr’s crucial win

Al Nassr of the Saudi Pro League defeated Al Taawoun on Saturday, with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring his 54th goal of 2023 to finish the year as the top goalscorer in the world.

Ronaldo, 38, Brozovic, Laporte and Otavio each bagged a goal for the victory over Al Taawoun, who did not make it easy. Alvaro Medran’s team started the match with a lot of personality and without any fear. This allowed them to take the lead in the 12th minute: El Mahdioui missed a penalty but was able to put in the rebound.

The conceded goal woke up Al Nassr, who were going against the tide in the early stages of the game. Ronaldo’s men pressed and found their oil: a pass from Talisca left Brozovic alone in front of the goalkeeper and the Croatian made no mistake in the one-on-one.

The visitors continued to insist, and the second came after a corner kick by Brozovic that was finished off by Laporte. The Spaniard’s header went into the goal and Al Nassr turned it around. A great reaction from Luis Castro’s team after receiving an early blow.

Al Nassr did not let up on the accelerator after halftime and the third came early: a bad clearance by the local defense was taken advantage of by Otavio to extend the advantage on the scoreboard.

Ronaldo was not on target early on in the game, but eventually found the net with a header from Fofana’s cross.

Al Taawoun offered resistance but could not get anything positive out of the visit to the second-placed team. Medran’s side remain in fourth place, six points behind third-place Al Ahli, who occupy the qualification place for the Asian Champions League.

Marca