Al Nassr secured a spot in the King’s Cup of Champions final by defeating Al Khaleej 3-1. Cristiano Ronaldo starred in the victory with two goals, and Sadio Mane scored once.
Ronaldo’s team, eliminated in last year’s semifinals, has now advanced to the final against reigning champions Al Hilal. The decisive match is scheduled for May 31, 2024, at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah.
Ronaldo, returning from a suspension, scored early in the match. He capitalized on a mistake by Al Khaleej’s defence and scored with a left-footed shot from outside the box. Before halftime, Mane extended the lead with a penalty kick, giving Al Nassr a 2-0 advantage at the break.
Ronaldo added his second goal by tapping in at the back post. Al Khaleej’s oversight in marking him allowed the prolific scorer to find the net again. Although Al Khaleej’s Fawaz Al Torais scored late in the game, it served merely as a consolation.
This victory followed a 1-0 win over Al Khaleej in league play four days earlier. Despite Anderson Talisca’s absence due to injury, Mane and Ronaldo started for Al Nassr.
The lineup for Al Nassr was a 4-3-3 formation featuring Ospina as a goalkeeper, with Telles, Laporte, Al Amri, and Sultan in defence. Midfielders included Brozovic, Al Khaibari, and Otavio, supporting forwards Mane, Ronaldo, and Ayman. Al Nassr’s bench consisted of Al Fatil, Al Sulaiheem, Boushal, Alhassan, Al Aliwa, Qassem, Al Nemer, Al Najjar, and Lajami.
Al Khaleej included Sehic as goalkeeper in their 4-3-3 lineup without new injuries following their league defeat. Al Hamsal, Al-Khabrani, Lopez, and Rebocho formed the defence, with Rodrigues, Jung, and Hamzi in midfield. The forward line featured Narey, Martins, and Sherif. Substitutes were Al Samiri, Hawsawi, Al Haydar, Al Torais, Masoud, Al Salem, Al Shanqiti, Nasser, and Al Haidari.
