In Round 12 of the Saudi Pro League, Al-Nassr finally dropped points for the first time. Cristiano Ronaldo’s side failed to beat Al-Ittifaq away from home. This was reported by euro-football.rureports.
In the 7th minute, Al-Nassr player Saad Al-Nasser was initially shown a red card for stepping on an opponent’s foot with a straight leg. However, after reviewing the VAR replays, the referee softened the decision and settled for a booking.
In the 16th minute, Al-Ittifaq opened the scoring: after a pass from Faris Al-Gamdi, Georginio Wijnaldum controlled the ball in the box and curled a precise shot into the far top corner — 1:0.
Al-Nassr then tried several times to respond. From a corner, the home goalkeeper fumbled the ball on the way out; João Félix hit a volley but couldn’t get it on target. Sultan Al-Ghanam then struck from distance after a Kingsley Coman pass — the ball hit the post and bounced out.
Early in the second half, the visitors restored parity. In the 47th minute, after a through ball into the box from Gabriel Angelo, Félix calmly beat the goalkeeper with a fine finish to make it 1:1.
In the 67th minute, Al-Nassr went in front, and the goal was scored in an unexpected way. When Félix shot from near the edge of the box, the ball deflected off Ronaldo’s lower back, changed direction and went into the bottom corner — 1:2.
The hosts didn’t give up. Wijnaldum slipped a delicate pass into the box, Moussa Dembélé shot under pressure from a defender, but the ball brushed the outside of the net.
In the 80th minute, Al-Ittifaq had their say anyway: Radi Al-Otaybi chased the ball down near the byline and cut it back, and Wijnaldum struck first time into the far bottom corner, catching the goalkeeper off guard — 2:2.
Despite the draw, Al-Nassr remain top of the table, but their lead over the second-placed team has been cut to three points.
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