Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr could reportedly win their ACL match against Al Wasl without even playing it

Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr could be closer to picking up three points in the AFC Champions League Elite without kicking a ball. The Saudi side was due to host Al Wasl in Riyadh on Oct. 26, but the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) postponed the match just hours before kickoff, and Al Nassr is now reportedly pushing to be awarded the win.

The AFC announced the decision without giving a reason or a new date, and reports from Saudi sports outlet Gulf News said that Al Wasl decided against making the trip because of flight disruptions and a lack of available flights.

The Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF), however, said it had completed every arrangement to receive the UAE club, including flight permits, and that the match commissioner and the referees had already arrived in Riyadh.

Al Nassr has since taken its first formal step. According to Saudi newspaper Al Riyadiya, the club wrote to the AFC asking for the reasons behind the postponement and submitted documents that show the landing permits were secured, along with the flight number of the private aircraft Al Wasl had arranged before changing its decision.

The team reportedly intends to pursue all available legal procedures, in coordination with the SAFF, to be awarded the points. For its part, AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa told Al Riyadiya that the confederation’s specialist committees are studying the matter.

A game in hand that could change the West standings for Al Nassr

Al Nassr currently sits seventh in the West region standings with six points from two wins and one loss. It has scored nine goals and conceded seven, for a goal difference of +2. That record keeps it inside the top eight places in the table, but only by a thin margin.

Al Wasl is a direct rival in the fight for a spot in the knockout stages. The UAE club is 11th with three points from one win and two losses, and a goal difference of -2, leaving it three points behind Al Nassr and two below the cutoff for qualification.

If the AFC were to award the points to Al Nassr, the Saudi side would climb to nine, tying Al Hilal, Esteghlal and Shabab Al Ahli, while also denying Al Wasl the chance to close the gap with a win that would take the UAE club to six, level with Al Nassr.

Although the final order would depend on tiebreakers and on how the result is recorded, that margin could prove decisive for a team that has already lost once.