“Not perfect”, “What happened?” – Fans left disappointed as Cristiano Ronaldo’s 28-year-old Al-Nassr teammate misses Al-Raed clash

Al-Nassr and star forward Cristiano Ronaldo are set to return to action following the international break with the visit to Al-Raed. The manager, Luis Castro, named a strong starting XI for the game as Al-Aalami look to claim a fifth consecutive win.

Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates are aware of the importance of every fixture going forward, after Al-Nassr's dropped points. The side lost its first two matches of the season against Al-Ettifaq and Al-Taawoun, both sides not owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF).

Castro named most of his side's European imports in the lineup, with Ronaldo named as captain, as usual. Senegalese forward Sadio Mane starts the game, along with Spanish defender Aymeric Laporte and Otavio also named in the lineup. Summer signing Alex Telles and Marcelo Brozovic also start for Al-Nassr.

Last season's top scorer Anderson Talisca was named on the bench for the side as they look for a win over Al-Raed.

Fans of the club took to X (formerly Twitter), to air their opinions after the side's lineup was announced via their official account.

Most fans raised questions over the conspicuous absence of French midfielder Seko Fofana, who was not listed for the match.

A fan regarded the situation as an imperfect one, with the tough-tackling midfielder left out of the squad for the match.

Ivorian midfielder Fofana joined the club from Ligue 1 outfit RC Lens after captaining them to a place in the UEFA Champions League last season.

The 28-year-old has featured just once for Al-Nassr this season, in their defeat to Al-Taawoun nearly a month ago.

Cristiano Ronaldo keen to lead Al-Nassr to success

Like the other three teams controlled by the PIF, Al-Nassr have invested heavily into their squad and will be eager for results this season. They signed a good number of top players from all over Europe for a handsome outlay.

Cristiano Ronaldo and his teammates have, however, not delivered as expected this season. Their side sits a disappointing seventh in the league, and a win will only take them up to fifth in the standings. They currently sit seven points behind leaders Al-Hilal, and will look to reduce the gap to four points.

Following his suspension from Portugal's match against Luxembourg, Ronaldo returned to his Saudi base early to prepare for Al-Raed. The captain will be keen to help his side close the gap to the leaders with another win on the road.