<a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/cristiano-ronaldo/" target="_blank">Cristiano Ronaldo</a> rose to the occasion once again as his 97th minute penalty sealed a thrilling 2-1 win for Al Nassr over Al Shabab in the <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/saudi-pro-league/" target="_blank">Saudi Pro League </a>on Friday. The international break seemed to have an effect on the international stars as Al Nassr struggled to change gears at the start of the match. However, Al Nassr took the lead when Aymeric Laporte opened the scoring in the 69th minute. Sadio Mane thought he had scored from a perfect Ronaldo pass on the 82nd minute but the goal was chalked off after Mane was found to be off-side. Stefano Pioli brought in Ali Alhassan looking to hold their position but the defender made an error while clearing in the final minute of regulation time and ended up putting the ball into his own net. Crucial points seemed to be slipping away before an extraordinary turn of events turned the match on its head. Robert Renan made a needless tackle on Abdulrahman Ghareeb inside the box and the referee duly pointed to the penalty spot in the 97th minute. Ronaldo stepped up to the challenge and scored his sixth goal of the league campaign. More drama awaited as Mohamed Simakan was sent off for stomping on Nader Al Sharari inside the box. But Abderrazak Hamdallah could not keep his cool and he hit the woodwork as Al Nassr secured three points in the most dramatic fashion. "We never give up," Ronaldo said on social media after the win. Al Nassr are now second in the SPL table on 17 points, four behind league leaders Al Hilal. Ronaldo showed once again why he is an inspiring figure on the pitch. Earlier, Portugal boss Roberto Martinez said Ronaldo is a great ambassador of the game. "When you arrive in a stadium, in a place like this, I think you get to know the iconic figure and the career of a player that is unique," Martinez had said ahead the Nations League match against Scotland. "There is not another player with more than 200 caps at international level as an example, the number of goals that he's scored, the trophies that he's achieved. "For me it's very easy to manage a player that can help the team to win tomorrow. All the rest is something for all of us to enjoy because it's a unique case and I think we can all learn from being close to him."
