With the services of Cristiano Ronaldo not available, Al Nassr comfortably defeated Al Akhdoud 9-0 in the Saudi Pro League on Monday at the Prince Hathloul bin Abdulaziz Sports City stadium.
Already out of title contention, this victory helped Al Nassr climb to third place and reach 63 points from 31 matches in the league.
This was also the side’s biggest win in the club’s history. The previous record stood at Nassr’s 8-0 win against Abha Club away from home last season in the league.
AS IT HAPPENED | Al Akhdoud vs Al Nassr
Earlier, skipper Ronaldo was not named in Al Nassr’s matchday squad for this fixture. Media reports suggest that head coach Stefano Pioli possibly kept the Portuguese forward out of the squad because of physical exhaustion. Regardless, the Riyadh-based side didn’t miss the 40-year-old.
The match was already out of the host’s reach after Nassr was leading four goals to nil at half-time. Jhon Duran scored a brace as Sadio Mane netted four. Ayman Yahya, Marcelo Brozovic, Mohammed Maran also got on the scoresheet.
Yahya broke the deadlock in the 16th minute before Duran and Brozovic gave the visitor a three-goal cushion within the first 30 minutes. Mane scored his first of the night when he converted from the penalty spot in first half’s stoppage time.
Soon after the break, Duran scored his second as Mane struck three goals in the span of 15 minutes. Maran added to Akhdoud’s misery after he converted a penalty for Nassr’s ninth goal of the match.
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