ABU DHABI, April 9 — Al-Nassr captain Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off late on as his side lost 2-1 to city rivals Al-Hilal in their Saudi Super Cup semi-final after a heated clash in Abu Dhabi yesterday.
Portugal’s record scorer was shown a straight red card four minutes from time for elbowing an opponent when his side were 2-0 down before they scored a late consolation.
Jorge Jesus’ Al-Hilal opened the scoring in the 62nd minute when Salem Al-Dawsari slotted the ball into the bottom right corner from a Sergej Milinkovic-Savic flick after a quick break.
Brazilian forward Malcolm doubled the lead in the 72nd with a fine header after Michael’s long cross from the right found his compatriot unmarked in the centre of the box.
Former Liverpool forward Sadio Mane got Al-Nassr on the scoresheet in stoppage time off Abdulrahman Ghareeb’s pass.
Al-Hilal will seek a record-extending fourth title in Thursday’s final when they face Karim Benzema’s Al-Ittihad, who beat Al-Wehda 2-1 in the earlier semi-final yesterday. — Reuters
