Odion Ighalo got the better of veteran striker Cristiano Ronaldo as Al Hilal obtained a 2-0 victory over Al Nassr in the Riyadh derby on Tuesday.
It was defending champions Al Hilal that drew first blood in the match. That came after Ighalo’s acrobatic overhead shot was blocked by Abdulelah Al-Amri’s hand.
English referee Michael Oliver deemed the handball illegal and awarded a penalty to Al Hilal, which Ighalo confidently put away in the 42nd minute.
The former Super Eagle got the hosts to the halftime break with an important 1-0 lead over their fierce city rivals.
Al Nassr was dealt another devastating blow as they gave away a penalty one hour into the contest. The diminutive Brazilian playmaker, Michael, wriggled and tiptoed into Al Nassr’s box before being blatantly brought down.
This presented Ighalo with an opportunity to put more salt in Al Nassr’s wounds. The Nigerian center-forward did not disappoint as he sent the goalkeeper the wrong way for the second time.
That brought his goal tally in the 2022–23 Saudi Pro League to 18 goals. He is now in touching distance of back-to-back Golden Boot awards.
The 33-year-old also reached the milestone of scoring 50 league goals in the Saudi top flight.
Ronaldo had a night to forget as he unleashed a wrestling move
Meanwhile, Ronaldo was overshadowed by the Nigerian, as the former offered very little on the night.
The only moment the Portuguese striker came into the limelight was when he made it onto the referee’s naughty list for wrestling down his opponent.
The 37-year-old earned a yellow card for grabbing Al Hilal’s Gustavo Cuéllar in a chokehold and bringing him to the ground.
A frustrating night for Ronaldo and Al Nassr as the defeat put a huge dent in their league title hopes. They now face the possibility of falling six points behind league leaders Al Ittihad, who have a game in hand.
Up next for Ronaldo and new manager Dinko Jelicic is a King’s Cup semi-final against Al Wehda on Monday.
He will be eager to make it to another final and add more silverware to his already highly decorated career.
However, Ronaldo will have to get past Odion Ighalo’s Al Hilal or table-toppers Al Ittihad, who face off in the Kings Cup semi-finals this Sunday.
