Cristiano Ronaldo and Talisca scored stunning free kicks as Al-Nassr returned to winning ways with a comfortable victory over Al Feiha.
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Al-Nassr emerged 4-1 winners over Al FeihaRonaldo involved in two of the goalsScored the 64th direct free-kick of his careerGetty Images SportTELL ME MORE
After dropping points against Al-Raed, Luis Castro wanted an inspired performance from his troops. He was delighted to see his men take the lead just five minutes into the match after Ronaldo set up Talisca. However, after taking the lead, the Knights of Najd took their feet off the pedal and were happy to sit back and absorb the pressure.
Al Feiha's Fashon Sakala kept asking questions of Aymeric Laporte and Co. but his attempts hardly troubled Bento between the sticks. Just as the two teams were about to head towards the tunnel, Ronaldo turned back the clock and scored from a direct free-kick. The Portuguese shortened his run-up and simply passed the ball over the wall into the top corner to double the lead.
After the resumption of play, Al-Nassr took control of the match and looked more comfortable going forward. Ronaldo could have doubled his lead on the hour-mark but an uncharacteristic miss saw him balloon his effort over the crossbar in a one-on-one situation with the keeper. However, Marcelo Brozovic made it 3-0 after he scored from a tight angle while Talisca capped off the evening with another sensational free-kick. Sakala did pull one back two minutes after Brozovic scored, but it was nothing more than a consolation strike.
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Ronaldo is just one short of scoring 900 official career goals after he netted against Al-Feiha. He is also just one behind Lionel Messi for all-time career free kicks (64).
Getty Images SportTHE MVP(S)
Ronaldo and Talisca were the star performers of the match. The Portuguese has started the season where he left off in the previous campaign by scoring in the first two Saudi Pro League matches. Talisca was equally brilliant. Not only did he take the pressure off by scoring an early goal, his free kick deep into stoppage time was a work of art.
THE BIG LOSER
Al Feiha head coach Christos Kontis must shoulder the blame for the lacklustre performance of his side. His men had their moments in the first half but failed to capitalize. And when the home fans were expecting a reaction in the next 45 minutes there was hardly any for the bulk of the half. They lost 1-0 to a 10-man Al-Taawoun in their campaign opener and after this insipid performance, Razovic must go back to the drawing board and conjure up a fresh tactical plan.