“João Félix opened the scoring within three minutes, catching Al Shabab completely cold and setting the tone for a dominant Al Nassr performance.”
Pivotal“João Félix doubled Al Nassr's advantage with his second goal of the match, making it 0-2 inside ten minutes and threatening to turn the game into a rout.”
Pivotal“Yannick Carrasco gave Al Shabab a lifeline, pulling one back to make it 1-2 and inject some hope into the home side's first-half performance.”
“Cristiano Ronaldo made it 1-3 with fifteen minutes remaining, effectively ending Al Shabab's hopes of mounting a full comeback and restoring Al Nassr's two-goal cushion.”
Pivotal“João Félix completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot deep into added time, sealing a 4-2 win and putting the final stamp on a dominant Al Nassr display.”
Al Shabab
Al Nassr
Outstanding performance
Al Nassr•AttackerAl Nassr were ruthless from the first whistle, with João Félix tearing Al Shabab apart in the opening ten minutes to set the tone for a commanding away victory. The Portuguese attacker struck in the 3rd and 10th minutes, exposing a disorganised Al Shabab defence before the home side had even found their footing. Al Shabab offered moments of resistance — Carrasco pulled one back on the half-hour and Ali Al-Bulayhi made it 2-3 with ten minutes left to briefly set nerves jangling — but Al Nassr's quality and control, backed by 57% possession and 61 dangerous attacks to Al Shabab's 43, proved the difference. Cristiano Ronaldo's 75th-minute goal effectively ended the contest as a contest, and Félix's injury-time penalty rubbed salt into Al Shabab's wounds. This result keeps Al Nassr firmly in the title conversation, while Al Shabab's defensive frailties — conceding four despite creating only two big chances — will concern their coaching staff heading into the final stretch of the season.
How entertaining was this match?
VAR decision results in a penalty awarded to Abdulla Al Hamdan.
Ali Al-Hassan replaces Marcelo Brozovic.
Abdulla Al Hamdan comes on for Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro.
Cristiano Ronaldo takes a right-footed shot, but it is blocked.
Saad Al-Nasser comes on for Sultan Al Ghannam.
Salem Al Najdi replaces Ayman Yahya.
Saad Yaslam receives a yellow card.
Cristiano Ronaldo attempts a left-footed shot, but it is blocked.
Ali Al-Boleahi scores with a left-footed shot.
Abdulaziz Al Othman replaces Ali Azaizeh.
Basil Al-Sayali replaces Vincent Sierro.
Cristiano RonaldoCristiano Ronaldo takes a left-footed shot and scores.
Inigo Martinez Berridi takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Nawaf Al-Boushail replaces Abdulrahman Ghareeb.
Ali Azaizeh takes a left-footed shot, but it hits the post.
Josh Brownhill takes a right-footed shot, but it is blocked.
Ali Azaizeh takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Yannick Ferreira Carrasco takes a right-footed shot, but it is blocked.
Josh Brownhill takes a right-footed shot, but it's saved.
Inigo Martinez Berridi attempts a header but misses the shot.
Joao Felix Sequeira takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Abdulrahman Ghareeb takes a right-footed shot, but it is blocked.
Yannick Ferreira Carrasco's header hits the post.
Yannick Ferreira Carrasco takes a left-footed shot and scores.
Marcelo Brozovic takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Sadio Mane takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Sadio Mane takes a left-footed shot but misses.
Inigo Martinez Berridi takes a header shot but misses.
Hammam Al-Hammami takes a right-footed shot but misses.
Abdulrahman Ghareeb takes a right-footed shot, but it's saved.
João FélixJoao Felix Sequeira scores with a header.
Hammam Al-Hammami takes a right-footed shot but misses.
João FélixJoao Felix Sequeira takes a shot with his right foot and scores.
Al Nassr arrive at the Al-Shabab Club Stadium desperate to respond after their shock 3-1 defeat to Al-Qadsiah dented their title charge, while a beleaguered Al Shabab side sitting 13th in the table looks to spring a home upset. With Cristiano Ronaldo in career-milestone form and the Pro League crown still not secured, Thursday's Riyadh derby carries genuine weight.
