Cristiano Ronaldo wastes chance to climb Saudi Pro League Golden Boot race with missed penalty for Al Nassr

Cristiano Ronaldo had the perfect chance to make a move in the Saudi Pro League scoring race, but a night of rare misfortune in front of goal let it slip away. Fortunately for Al Nassr, it did not cost them the points.

The opportunity came just before halftime at the Al Awwal Park, with the score still 0-0 against Neom. In the sixth minute of first-half stoppage time, Al Dossary brought down Joao Felix in the area, and after a VAR review the referee awarded a penalty. Ronaldo, in search of the 982nd goal of his career, took it himself but dragged his effort wide of the left post.

It did not end there for the Al Nassr captain. Right after the break, he had another huge chance when a header crossed the goal and he fired over the open net from a few meters out. In the 74th minute, he also sent another shot narrowly wide, in a game where he finished with several chances but no goals.

Luckily for Al Nassr, Joao Felix saved the night. The Portuguese midfielder struck a right-footed shot from outside the box in the 61st minute to give Al Nassr a 1-0 win, while Neom almost equalized six minutes later when Alexandre Lacazette’s header hit the post.

For the Golden Boot race, the penalty was the kind of opportunity Ronaldo cannot afford to waste. A goal from the spot would have lifted him to five league goals this season, but he remains on four, far from the 11 of the scoring chart leader, Ivan Toney. The win leaves Al Nassr third in the standings with 22 points from nine matches, and they are back in action on Oct. 23 against Al Faisaly.

Rivals pull further away in the scoring race

Ronaldo’s missed penalty came on a day when several of his competitors for the Golden Boot found the net. Al Ittihad’s Youssef En-Nesyri scored a brace in the 4-1 win at Al Ettifaq, which took him to seven goals and into second place in the scoring chart.

His teammate George Ilenikhena also scored and he now has five. Al Qadsiah’s Tijjani Reijnders scored a stoppage-time winner in the 1-0 victory at Al Taawoun, which also put him on five goals and sent Al Qadsiah to the top of the league table.

At the top of the chart, Al Ahli’s Ivan Toney still leads with 11 goals in eight matches, but he is currently injured. The English striker hurt his hip in training and missed Al Ahli’s trip to Al Fayha, with no return date announced, which gives his pursuers a chance to close the gap. Ronaldo remains on four, outside the top 10 and seven goals behind the leader.