Cristiano Ronaldo set another goalscoring record as his side Al Nassr beat US Monastir 4-1 in an Arab Club Champions Cup game at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh on Tuesday.
Ronaldo started the comeback with a clinical header in the 74th minute, scoring his 145th headed goal, the highest-ever in football, surpassing Gerd Muller’s previous tally of 144 goals.
This was also Al Nassr’s first win in the tournament this season, following a goalless draw against Al-Shabab in the previous match.
Al Nassr started the match on the offensive with former Inter Milan stalwart Marcelo Brozovic pulling strings alongside former Lens captain Seko Fofana.
In the 42nd minute, the breakthrough finally arrived from an attack started by Brozovic. The Croat’s long ball along the left flank was received well by Abdulrahman Ghareeb who set up Anderson Talisca to open the scoring.
However, an error by Al Nassr’s defender Ali Lajami, trying to clear the ball, saw him head it into his own net to make it all square, six minutes after the hour-mark.
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It was then Ronaldo stepped up, scoring his 839th career goal as the stadium erupted with his record-breaking strike.
The game’s tempo shifted entirely to Al Nassr’s side after it, with Abdulelah Al-Amri and Abdulaziz Saud Al Elewai scoring two goals in two minutes, in the last minutes of the match.
The win propelled Al Nassr to the top of its Group in the King Salman Club Cup, level on points with Al Shabab but ahead on goal difference.
The result will also be relieving for Ronaldo’s side which has had a mixed outing against European teams, including two routs against Benfica and Celta Vigo.
Monastir, on the other hand, slumped to the bottom of the table and is the only team in its group without a single point. Al Nassr plays Egyptian side Zamalek SC on Thursday, in the last round of group-stage matches, while Monastir will lock horns with Al Shabab.
