Saudi Pro League: Cristiano Ronaldo steals the show in seven-goal Al Nassr thriller
- Al Nassr emerge victorious as Ronaldo and Anderson Talisca score twice
- Victory keeps gap to table-topping Al Ittihad down to three points
- Riyad Mahrez and Franck Kessie on target for Al Ahli
The Saudi Pro League title race is really beginning to hot up with six teams now separated by just three points at the top of the table.
Al Ittihad, managed by Nuno Espirito Santo and led on the field by Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante, lead the way after winning six of their first seven games, but Al Nassr are keeping pace after a blockbuster 4-3 win over Al Ahli on Friday night.
Cristiano Ronaldo was the star of the show for Al Nassr, scoring his eighth and ninth goals of the Saudi Pro League season, and his brace was matched by Brazilian team-mate Anderson Talisca - their four strikes coming in the first 52 minutes of the game.
Former Barcelona midfielder Franck Kessie and former Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez were on the scoresheet for Al Ahli, though much of the focus after the final whistle centred around the performance of ex-Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, who will feel he could have done better in Al Ahli's goal on more than one occasion.
Things were not quite so rosey for Al Hilal and Neymar on matchday seven, as they staggered to a 1-1 draw at Damac, losing top spot in the table in the process.
Malcom, formerly of Zenit St Petersburg, was the goalscorer for the side who attempted to sign Kylian Mbappe for a world record £259m fee this summer, but Aleksandar Mitrovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Kalidou Koulibaly and Neymar were unable to force a positive result. Ruben Neves was a second-half substitute.
Elsewhere, Steven Gerrard's Al Ettifaq kept themselves within touching distance of top spot as they edged a 4-3 thriller against Al Ta'ee. Former Liverpool and PSG midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum scored twice and so did striker Moussa Dembele, formerly of Fulham, Celtic, Atletico Madrid and Lyon.
Saudi Pro League results
Matchday seven |
|---|
Al Ettifaq 4-3 Al Ta'ee |
Al Taawoun 2-1 Al Raed |
Damac 1-1 Al Hilal |
Al Shabab 4-1 Al Hazm |
Al Ittihad 2-1 Al Fateh |
Al Riyadh 1-3 Al Feiha |
Al Akhdoud 0-1 Al Khaleej |
Al Wedha 4-0 Abha |
Al Nassr 4-3 Al Ahli |
Saudi Pro League table
Position | Team | Played | GD | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | Al Ittihad | 7 | +13 | 18 |
2. | Al Hilal | 7 | +14 | 17 |
3. | Al Taawoun | 7 | +7 | 16 |
4. | Al Ettifaq | 7 | +6 | 16 |
5. | Al Nassr | 7 | +9 | 15 |
6. | Al Ahli | 7 | +3 | 15 |