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Cristiano Ronaldo saw his Al-Nassr side lose to Al-Ettifaq on Friday night
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Cristiano Ronaldo sparked controversy during Al-Nassr's 3-2 defeat to Al-Ettifaq on Friday night with a furious outburst in the closing minutes of the match.
The 40-year-old star reacted angrily after teammate Jhon Duran received a red card in the 95th minute.
Ronaldo was seen throwing his arms in the air and confronting the linesman before booting the ball from the centre spot into the stands.
The forward then proceeded to the touchline where he appeared to remonstrate with the fourth official.
Cristiano Ronaldo was furious after Jhon Duran was sent off against Al-Ettifaq
Reuters
The red card incident occurred when Duran appeared to tap Al-Ettifaq player Abdulelah Al-Malki on the back of the head.
Al-Malki's reaction was dramatic, with the midfielder falling to the ground and rolling around whilst clutching his head.
The minimal contact was enough to convince the referee to dismiss Duran, who had only been playing in Saudi Arabia for four matches since his £64million move.
Al-Nassr are reportedly considering an appeal against the decision ahead of their upcoming match against Al-Wehda.
Fans took to social media to criticise Ronaldo's behaviour during the incident.
One user on X wrote: "Continues to embarrass himself."
"This f****** manchild should have gotten a yellow card for that," another commented.
A third fan pointed to Ronaldo's status in Saudi Arabia, stating: "It's literally his league. There's no one that can punish him and that's why he does these things."
Al-Nassr manager Stefano Pioli appeared unimpressed with both the red card incident and his players' reactions.
Cristiano Ronaldo could not prevent Al-Nassr from losing to Al-Ettifaq
Reuters
"I'm not happy with the red card, [but] our players have to be calm," he said in his post-match press conference.
Pioli attributed the defeat to individual errors rather than tactical issues.
"We could have played better, but mistakes cost me a lot today and caused the loss," he added.
"Everyone is responsible for mistakes, I am the first one responsible for correcting mistakes and we do the work very seriously."
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Jhon Duran was sent off for this last night😭😭😭
— The 44 ⚽️ (@The_Forty_Four) February 22, 2025
What is football coming to?!❌ pic.twitter.com/hhjjWPTsFd
The defeat leaves Al-Nassr fourth in the Saudi Pro League, eight points behind leaders Al-Ittihad who have a game in hand.
With 13 matches remaining, Al-Nassr's title hopes appear increasingly distant.
Despite the setback, Ronaldo remains the league's top scorer with 16 goals in 19 games, just ahead of former teammate Karim Benzema who has 15.
Al-Nassr still have a chance for silverware this season, with an AFC last-16 tie against Iranian side Esteghlal scheduled for March.