Cristiano Ronaldo just received a red card when Al Nassr lost 1-2 to Al Hilal in the semi-finals of the Saudi King Cup early this morning. This defeat leaves Ronaldo and his teammates officially empty-handed in the 2023/24 campaign.

Entering the semi-finals at Muhammad bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, Ronaldo really had a series of dangerous opportunities. However, not once did his shots turn into goals.

When Ronaldo showed off his assist skills for Otavio to hit the net, the referee refused. In this situation, VAR intervened and rejected the goal on the grounds that before creating the assist, Ronaldo was offside. The 39-year-old star reacted violently and received a yellow card. The two teams temporarily left the field with a score of 0-0.

After a scoreless draw in the first half, Al Hilal broke the deadlock thanks to Salem Al Dawsari’s goal in the 61st minute. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic was the one who passed the ball to the Saudi Arabia striker to score.

An unforgettable match for Ronaldo

In the 72nd minute, Malcom doubled the gap for Al Hilal 2-0 after making good use of Michael’s assist.

Being 2 goals ahead made Al Nassr players frustrated and easily agitated, including Ronaldo. As a result, the Portuguese star had an unsportsmanlike handling in the 86th minute.

In a situation of fighting for the ball on the touchline, Ronaldo elbowed Al Bulayhi. The referee reminded him, but Ronaldo continued to argue. He immediately gave the Portuguese player a red card and sent him away.

It is increasingly difficult for Al Nassr because they have to play with 10 players. All this club could do was shorten the score thanks to Sadio Mane in the 90+9 minute, accept a 1-2 loss and stop in the Saudi King Cup.

This is Ronaldo’s empty-handed season. They collapsed early in the Asian Cup, lost to Al Hilal in the national championship race and most recently failed in the National Cup. It can be said that his second season at Al Nassr was even worse than the first.