Cristiano Ronaldo scored two goals and was substituted at half-time as Al-Nassr lost 3-2 at Spanish Liga 2 team Almeria on Sunday.
Two-time Saudi Pro League top scorer Ronaldo struck first time from close range in the 17th minute, completing a slick move involving strike partners Joao Felix and Sadio Mane.
⚽ | From build-up to brilliance 🤩
Cristiano Ronaldo applies the perfect finish 🐐#AlNassrAlmeria
pic.twitter.com/WFlCjN1WeQ— AlNassr FC (@AlNassrFC_EN) August 10, 2025
Former Real Madrid midfielder Sergio Arribas had put Almeria ahead with six minutes played, slotting in from ex-Atletico Madrid forward Leo Baptistao’s pass.
Arribas then missed a straightforward chance to restore his side’s lead and was punished when Ronaldo converted a 39th-minute penalty, but Adri Embarba struck either side of half-time – the first an audacious lob over Nawaf Alaqidi after the goalkeeper’s calamitous pass – to give the hosts a deserved win.
His Iconic celebration 🐐
Again, in Spain 🤩
pic.twitter.com/QXpvG1GKpL— AlNassr FC (@AlNassrFC_EN) August 10, 2025
Al Nassr vs Toulouse: Inigo Martinez debut
Former Spain centre-back Inigo Martinez made his Al-Nassr debut following his exit from Barcelona.
Ronaldo was substituted at half-time for Saudi Arabia midfielder Ali Alhassan, while Joao Felix and Mane played throughout.
Two-time African Footballer of the Year Mane sent a free-kick against the crossbar during the closing stages but Almeria, who lost in last season’s promotion semi-finals, finished on 11 of the 13 attempts on target between the teams.
Joao Felix, who joined from Chelsea for £43.7 million in July, is yet to score in three Al-Nassr appearances.
The Portuguese was once regarded as the world’s most exciting young player after scoring 20 goals in 43 games in his debut season for Benfica, persuading Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone to pay £113million – the third-highest fee ever – for him.
Alongside an uneasy relationship with notorious taskmaster Simeone, the sensation struggled for form and fitness before being loaned to Chelsea in January 2023.
A subsequent loan switch to Barcelona again produced patchy form, causing cash-strapped Barca to decide against making the deal permanent, instead signing Dani Olmo.
Atleti sold Joao Felix to Chelsea in exchange for England midfielder Conor Gallagher, with the then-Portugal international valued at £45m in a deal likely linked to the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules.
Six months into a seven-year deal at Stamford Bridge, Joao Felix began a loan spell at AC Milan that yielded a return of three goals in 21 games.
First appearance.. ⏳😍 pic.twitter.com/ZKSS33WtKD
— AlNassr FC (@AlNassrFC_EN) August 10, 2025
Cristiano Ronaldo: First season under Jorge Jesus
Ronaldo featured for the third time since signing a contract extension to end uncertainty over the talisman’s future at the end of the 2024/25 season.
New manager Jorge Jesus had won all of his previous three games in charge, starting with a 5-2 win over Austrian club SK St Johann, when Ronaldo was rested after starting pre-season training and Al-Nassr’s goals came from Mane, Abdulrahman Ghareeb, Mohamed Simakan, Abdulmajeed Al-Sulaiheem and an own goal.
The Portugal captain and Mohammed Maran then scored in a 2-1 win over Ligue 1 side Toulouse before a goal from Simakan and a Ronaldo hat-trick sealed a 4-0 thrashing of Rio Ave in Portugal on Thursday.
“Without his invitation, I certainly wouldn’t be here,” Jorge Jesus said of Ronaldo when he arrived in July on a one-year contract.
“The motivation will be great. I’m going to try to ensure that Al-Nassr, which is one of the best clubs in Saudi Arabia, can win titles.”
The 70-year-old Portuguese won the Saudi Pro League and King Cup with Al-Hilal in 2023/24.
“Cristiano Ronaldo is a player who has always won everything he’s played for,” added Jorge Jesus.
“He hasn’t won in Saudi Arabia yet. I’ll see if I can help him. We speak the same language, everything is easy.”
Cristiano Ronaldo contract
Despite Al-Nassr’s colosssal financial might through the country’s Public Investment Fund, Ronaldo is yet to win the Saudi title.
Shortly after Al-Nassr finished third last season – 13 points behind champions Al-Ittihad – Ronaldo appeared to strongly hint on social media that he had played his final game for the club.
He agreed a new contract exactly a month later, having scored in Portugal’s triumphant Nations League semi-final against Germany and final against Spain.
The five-time Champions League winner scored 35 goals in 41 matches across all competitions for Al-Nassr in 2024/25.
Ronaldo weekly salary
On financial website Forbes’ all-time list of the highest earning athletes in a year, only boxer Floyd Mayweather eclipses Ronaldo, having pocketed an estimated $300m (£226m) in 2015 and $285m (£214.5m) in 2018.
Ronaldo was said to have surpassed $1 billion (£771m) in career earnings two years before becoming the most high-profile footballer to move to Saudi Arabia.
Ronaldo’s first Al-Nassr deal was widely reported to be worth £14.75m a month or £3.4m per week. His annual salary was said to be £177m per year, made up of £62m for his football salary, supplemented by commercial bonuses.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner has a variety of lucrative sponsorship deals, with his recent endorsements including Whoop, video game UFL and cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
Sadio Mane stats
Liverpool and Senegal icon Mane joined Al-Nassr from Bayern Munich in August 2023 on a reported tax-free salary of more than £34m.
Now 33, Mane shared the Premier League Golden Boot and won the Champions League in 2018/19, then won the 2019/20 Premier League with the Reds.
He contributed 19 goals and 11 assists in 46 appearances in all competitions in his first campaign with Al-Nassr, then scored 18 and set up 14 in 47 matches last season.
When does Ronaldo’s 2025/26 season start with Al Nassr?
The 2025/26 Saudi Pro League season will start in late August, with the fixtures yet to be confirmed in early August. You can keep an eye on any announcements here.
Al-Nassr face Al-Ittihad, who are managed by legendary defender Laurent Blanc, in the Saudi Super Cup semi-finals in Hong Kong on August 19 (13:00 BST / 08:00 ET / 05:00 PT).
