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Fans were all praise for Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr teammate Marcelo Brozovic for his stellar role in the 4-1 come-from-behind Saudi Pro League win at Al-Taawoun on Saturday (December 30).
Luis Castro's side fell behind to Aschraf El Mahdioui's 13th-minute opener before Brozovic hauled them back on level terms 13 minutes later before setting up Aymeric Laporte 10 minutes later to put the visitors in front.
Otavio scored five minutes into the second period to put daylight between Al-Alami and the visitors before Al-Nassr captain Ronaldo put the icing on the cake in the second minute of stoppage time.
Fans took due note of Brozovic's stellar performance, with some deeming him to be the best midfielder in the game currently. One tweeted:
"Brozovic take a bow. What a performance tonight"
Another chimed in:
"Marcelo Brozovic is a world-class footballer. The way he effortlessly controls matches still baffles me."
Here are some of the top reactions on X:
The win - Al-Nassr's fourth on the trot in the league - took them back to within seven points of runaway leaders Al-Hilal (53) after 19 games. Meanwhile, Al-Taawoun remain fourth, now 12 points behind their matchday 19 visitors.
Al-Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo dazzles with 54th goal of the year
Al-Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo was among the goals again as 2023 drew to a close. Already confirmed to end the year as the top scorer for club and country, the 38-year-old added to his tally late on.
It was his 54th goal of the year, with 44 of them coming for his club side. Thirty of them have come this season - including a league-leading 20 strikes in the league. His three other strikes have come in the AFC Champions League, while the other came in the King's Cup.
Notably, six of Ronaldo's goals came in Al-Alami's victorious campaign in the Arab Club Champions Cup, later deemed by FIFA to be a friendly tournament.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner's 10 goals for Portugal came in their successful UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying campaign. The 2016 winners will now look to add to their sole European Championship title in next summer's finals in Germany, where Ronaldo is set to make a record-extending sixth appearance. Nobody else has appeared in more than four.
