Cristiano Ronaldo and Samu Costa score in Al Nassr comeback win over Al Taawoun

Match action in Riyadh

Al Nassr came from behind to defeat Al Taawoun 2-1 on Friday in the fourth round of the Saudi Pro League. The visitors opened the scoring in the 11th minute when Bassam Al Hurayji saw his deflected effort find the net at King Saud University Stadium, causing surprise among the home supporters. Al Nassr responded deep into first-half stoppage time when Portuguese midfielder Samu Costa received a pass from Sadio Mane and drilled a low, left-footed shot into the bottom corner at the 45+5-minute mark. Costa, who joined the Riyadh club from Mallorca during the summer transfer window after receiving a national team call-up from Roberto Martinez for the 2026 World Cup, registered his second goal for the club. Five minutes into the second half, Cristiano Ronaldo completed the turnaround by redirecting an attempt from defender Mohamed Simakan into the opposing net.

Milestones and squad management

The 50th-minute finish marked Ronaldo's 978th career goal, leaving the 41-year-old forward 22 goals away from reaching the milestone of 1,000 goals in professional football. Al Nassr controlled the tempo following the turnaround, while Al Taawoun retained possession at times but struggled to direct efforts toward the goal. Manager Ange Postecoglou withdrew Ronaldo in the 80th minute, bringing on forward Abdullah Al-Hamdan to maintain the narrow lead. Seven minutes later, Sami Al-Najei replaced Costa, before Joao Felix generated a scoring opportunity in the 89th minute that was not converted. Felix played the entire 90 minutes in attack for the reigning league champions.

Previous controversy in Dammam

The victory followed internal tension during the preceding match against Al Ettifaq in Dammam, where Al Nassr secured a 3-2 comeback win under difficult circumstances. In that encounter, starting goalkeeper Bento received a direct red card in the 12th minute for a foul as the last man, prompting the unexpected introduction of 18-year-old goalkeeper Al Otaibi. Ronaldo displayed visible frustration with the young goalkeeper's errors before the interval, gesturing on the pitch and continuing heated discussions inside the tunnel while the team trailed 2-0. Postecoglou subsequently withdrew Ronaldo at halftime, later explaining his tactical reasoning during the post-match press conference.

When I made the substitutions, including the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, I believed that the players who came on could make an impact. I am here to help the team with what I see, and everyone knows that Cristiano Ronaldo has not played for a long time. He had an exceptional performance in the first half and we opted for a different approach.

League standings and upcoming fixtures

Following that halftime adjustment against Al Ettifaq, Mane scored twice in the 74th and 90th minutes alongside a 77th-minute equalizer from Al Amri, with Felix supplying both assists and earning player of the match honors. Felix has now registered 30 goals and 21 assists in 51 matches for Al Nassr, directly contributing to 51 team goals since moving to Riyadh. With four consecutive victories from four matches, Al Nassr occupies first place in the Saudi Pro League with 12 points, whereas Al Taawoun sits in 14th position with two points. Al Nassr will play away against Al Ittihad in their next league match.