Ronaldo breaks Al Nassr scoring record with decisive winning strike

Cristiano Ronaldo scored the decisive goal as Al Nassr came from behind to beat Al Taawoun 2-1 in the Saudi Pro League on Friday (August 28), extending their perfect start to the season.

The 41-year-old Portugal captain struck in the 50th minute to take his Saudi Pro League tally for Al Nassr to 104 goals, making him the club’s all-time leading scorer in the competition.

Ronaldo surpassed former Al Nassr striker Mohammed Al-Sahlawi, who scored 103 league goals in 205 appearances between 2009 and 2019. Ronaldo reached the mark in just over three years after joining the club in January 2023.

The goal was also the 978th of Ronaldo’s career, leaving him 22 short of the much-anticipated 1,000-goal milestone.

Al Taawoun took the lead in the 11th minute through Mohammed Bassam Al-Hurayji before Samuel Costa levelled for Al Nassr deep into first-half stoppage time.

Ronaldo then completed the comeback five minutes after the restart. Joao Felix burst into the box from the left and cut the ball back for Mohamed Simakan, whose shot was redirected into the net from close range by Ronaldo.

The victory keeps Al Nassr top of the league with four wins from four matches.

It was their second comeback victory in a week after they recovered from 2-0 down to beat Al Ettifaq 3-2 on Tuesday, despite goalkeeper Bento being sent off. Ronaldo was substituted before Al Nassr scored three times in the final 16 minutes of that match.

Against Al Taawoun, however, Ronaldo played the full 90 minutes and once again proved decisive.