Cristiano Ronaldo started the match against Al Etifaq in the Saudi Pro League at Allawal Park and contributed to a 1-0 victory, but he was not at his best.
The 41-year-old forward played despite severe stomach discomfort and was forced to be substituted near the end of the game after showing obvious signs of distress, but it was later revealed that he had vomited after going to the changing room.
CR7 participated in the match against Al Etifaq despite feeling unwell.
The Portuguese star played the full 90 minutes, but with six minutes of injury time added, he requested a substitution and was replaced by Abdullah Alhamdan. But the story didn’t end there.
After the match, Al Nasr coach Jorge Jesus admitted (via GOAL) that Ronaldo had not been feeling 100% before the game, but played anyway and admitted that he ended up vomiting.
I thought about not starting him. He wasn’t feeling well. He had a stomach ache and was very tired, so when I took him out he went to the locker room and vomited.
Despite the poor weather, “El Bicho” led the attack and contributed to the first and only goal of the match. A powerful shot from outside the box was saved by goalkeeper Marek Rodak, before teammate Kingsley Coman capitalized on the rebound to give Al Nasr the winning goal. He tried to score twice, but was unable to find the net.
“+3. Great energy from the stands!” Cristiano wrote on Instagram, without mentioning his health condition.
Meanwhile, the latest victory was the team’s 15th of the season, taking their tally to 76 points and keeping Al Nasr in contention for the league title for the first time since the 2018-19 season, and the 41-year-old Portuguese star’s first win with the Saudi club.
CR7 are the all-time top scorers with 968 goals, but they will have to wait until this Sunday, April 19th, in the AFC Champions League 2 quarter-final against Al Wasl, to further improve their record.
Meanwhile, the team will play Al Ahly at home on Wednesday, April 29th in their next match in the Saudi Pro League, in a head-to-head showdown for the top spot. Al Ahly are currently in third place, while Al Nasr are looking to consolidate their lead.
