Cristiano Ronaldo's Emotional Night: Manager's Explanation Contradicts Journalist's Claim

Cristiano Ronaldo made his first start of the season for Al-Nassr in their 3-2 comeback win over Al-Ettifaq, but his night was marred by controversy surrounding his substitution at half-time.

According to Saudi Arabian sports journalist and television presenter Khalid Al-Shanif, Ronaldo requested to be substituted against Al-Ettifaq because he wasn't ready and wanted a ready player in his place. Al-Shanif claimed that Ronaldo was 'crying intensely' after the match.

However, Al-Nassr manager Ange Postecoglou offered a different explanation for Ronaldo's limited involvement, stating that the plan was always for him to play 45 minutes against Al-Ettifaq due to his fitness level.

Postecoglou explained that Ronaldo had only recently returned to competitive action after an extended break following the 2026 World Cup and his marriage to Georgina Rodríguez, and that the team wanted to gradually build up his playing time.

Despite the controversy surrounding his substitution, Ronaldo watched from the sidelines as his team produced a stunning turnaround, with Sadio Mané scoring a brace to complete the comeback.

The result leaves Al-Nassr with a perfect nine points from their opening three Saudi Pro League matches, and Ronaldo's return is still being managed by the team.

Al-Nassr's Comeback Victory

Al-Nassr came out for the second half two goals down and a man short, but they gradually turned the game around. Sadio Mané pulled one back in the 74th minute after João Félix threaded a pass through to him, giving the visitors a route back into the match.

Only three minutes later, Félix provided the delivery again, this time from a corner, and Abdulelah Al-Amri headed Al-Nassr level. With the match seemingly heading towards a draw, Al-Nassr found one final opening in the 90th minute.

Sami Al-Najei drove the counter-attack forward before finding Mané, who finished from inside the box to complete his brace and send Al-Nassr from 2-0 down to a 3-2 victory.

The celebrations continued inside the dressing room, where visuals showed Ronaldo embracing his teammates after the dramatic turnaround.