Cristiano Ronaldo Asks For Referee To Be SUBSTITUTED During Al Nassr's Dramatic King Cup Win Over Ettifaq

Cristiano Ronaldo was furious with the referee during Al Nassr's King Cup clash with Ettifaq. Ronaldo gestured that he wanted the referee to be substituted.
Cristiano Ronaldo Asks For Referee To Be SUBSTITUTED During Al Nassr's Dramatic King Cup Win Over Ettifaq
Cristiano Ronaldo Asks For Referee To Be SUBSTITUTED During Al Nassr's Dramatic King Cup Win Over Ettifaq /

Cristiano Ronaldo was furious with the referee during Al Nassr's King Cup clash against Ettifaq on Tuesday.

Shortly before half-time, Ronaldo was seen gesturing that he wanted the referee to be replaced.

This came moments after Al Nassr forward Talisca had seen a goal disallowed.

Brazilian Talisca thought that he had scored the game's opening goal four minutes into first-half added time.

The goal was initially awarded by on-field referee Piero Maza.

However, the VAR then urged Maza to review the incident on the pitch-side screen and an offside was eventually called against Ronaldo, despite the 38-year-old not touching the ball.

It was at this point that Ronaldo - who had earlier been shown a yellow card for arguing with the referee about a different decision - pointed at Maza before making a clear gesture with his hands.

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Of course, the referee was not replaced and he had another big call to make before the end of the first half.

Maza issued Talisca with a yellow card after he had caught an Ettifaq player with his left arm near the halfway line.

But the VAR got involved again and a review resulted in Talisca's yellow being upgraded to red after he was found guilty of violent conduct.

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Cristiano Ronaldo pictured playing for Al Nassr in October 2023
Cristiano Ronaldo was not happy with the referee during Al Nassr's King Cup game against Ettifaq :: IMAGO/Power Sport Images/Victor Fraile

The game was still 0-0 in the 89th minute when Ettifaq were also reduced to 10 men. Ali Hazazi was shown a straight red card for a foul on Otavio.

Extra time followed and it looked as though a penalty shootout would be needed until Sadio Mane scored the winning goal in the 117th minute.

Tuesday's 1-0 win saw Al Nassr progress to the quarter-finals.

But Ronaldo was still complaining about the officiating, this time to Ettifaq captain Jordan Henderson, after the game had finished.

Highlights: Al Nassr 1-0 Ettifaq


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Robert Summerscales
ROBERT SUMMERSCALES

Robert Summerscales launched FanNation Futbol in February 2022. Rob is a British journalist who previously spent two years on the sports desk at the Daily Mail in London, having earlier served as editor of CaughtOffside.com. He has been to the last two FIFA Men's World Cups, in Russia and Qatar, and is looking forward to completing his hat-trick in North America in 2026.