AL HASA: Cristiano Ronaldo got off the mark for his new paymasters Al Nassr with a stoppage-time penalty that rescued a 2-2 away draw against Al Fateh in a thrilling Saudi Pro League match on Friday.

The Portugal international, a five-time Ballon D’Or winner who turns 38 on Sunday, converted from the spot three minutes into added time, after he fired blanks in the January 22 league win over Ettifaq and in this week’s Super Cup loss to Al Ittihad.

Days before his Al Nassr debut, he scored twice for a Saudi composite team in an entertaining 5-4 loss to a Paris St Germain side featuring his great rival Lionel Messi.

“Happy to have scored my first goal in the Saudi league and great effort by whole team to achieve an important draw in a very difficult match!” Ronaldo said on Twitter after the game.

Ronaldo, who holds the all-time records for Champions League and international goals, signed a 2½-year deal with Al Nassr in December, reported to be worth over 200 million euros ($220 million), and was appointed captain shortly after his arrival.

Al Nassr now top the standings after 15 games, level on 34 points with second-placed Al Shabab but with a match in hand. They next travel to Al Wedha on Thursday.

Published in Dawn, February 5th, 2023