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Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 51st goal of 2023, helping Al-Nassr to a dominant 3-1 home win against Steven Gerrard's Al-Ettifaq in the Saudi Pro League on Friday, December 22.
Alex Telles broke the deadlock with a long-range thunderbolt in the 43rd minute. Marcelo Brozovic doubled the host's advantage in the 59th minute, finding the bottom-left corner from a Cristiano Ronaldo assist.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner coolly dispatched his penalty 14 minutes later to make it 3-0. Mohammed Al-Kuwaykibi scored in the 85th minute but his goal proved to be in vain as Al-Nassr held on to their lead to secure all three points.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner has been in sensational form this season for Al-Nassr. He has netted 21 goals and registered 11 assists in 23 appearances across all competitions.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. now have 40 points from 17 games and are second in the league standings, 10 points behind leaders Al-Hilal, with a game in hand.
Without further ado, let's take a look at Al-Nassr's player ratings:
Al-Nassr Player Ratings
Nawaf Alaqidi - 6.5/10
Alaqidi had a quiet game, making just one save and two recoveries. His distribution was decent though as he completed 23 out of his 26 passes with an accuracy of 88%.
Sultan Al-Ghannam - 7.5/10
Al-Ghannam looked assured both in defense and up the pitch. He won two duels, made seven recoveries, and had a long-ball accuracy of 75%.
Ali Lajami - 6.5/10
Lajami had a decent game for Al-Nassr, completing 66 out of his 69 passes with an accuracy of 96%. He also won seven duels and made four recoveries.
Aymeric Laporte - 7/10
Laporte played well, completing 78 out of his 85 passes with an accuracy of 92%. The former Manchester City star made six recoveries and won five duels.
Alex Telles - 9/10
Telles had an excellent game and was the Player of the Match. He scored a brilliant goal, made a goal-line clearance, and created three big chances. He also won all four of his tackles and won six duels.
Marcelo Brozovic - 8.5/10
Brozovic had a very good outing, scoring his second goal of the season for Al-Nassr. The Croatian completed all nine of his long balls, made five recoveries, and had a pass accuracy of 91%.
Seko Fofana - 7/10
Fofana played decently in midfield with a pass accuracy of 90%. He also made six recoveries and won two ground duels.
Anderson Talisca - 7/10
Talisca had a quiet night and wasn't able to register a goal contribution. He completed all four of his long balls and landed two of his four shots on target.
Otavio - 7.5/10
Otavio played well, completing 64 out of his 65 passes with an accuracy of 98%. The former Porto star also created two big chances, won six duels, and completed all seven of his long balls.
Sadio Mane - 6.5/10
Mane struggled at times during the game and should have scored early in the first half. He had a pass accuracy of 90% and created three big chances but failed to land any of his shots on target.
Cristiano Ronaldo - 8.5/10
Ronaldo had a stellar performance against Al-Ettifaq. He scored a goal and provided an excellent assist. The 38-year-old created two chances, landed five of his seven shots on target and was a big threat to Al-Ettifaq's defense.
Substitutes
Abdulrahman Ghareeb - 6/10
Ghareeb replaced Talisca in the 79th minute and played well.
Abdullah Al-Khaibari - 6/10
Al-Khaibari replaced Fofana in the 79th minute and put in a decent performance.
Sami Al-Najei - N/A
Al-Najei came on in the 88th minute for Otavio and didn't play long enough to warrant a rating.
Abdulmajeed Al-Sulaiheem - N/A
Al-Sulaiheem was subbed on in the 90th minute for Brozovic and also didn't play long enough to warrant a rating.
