Cristiano Ronaldo fired a free kick well over the crossbar early in the match. (Image: X)
Cristiano Ronaldo was left red-faced in an embarrassing moment before scoring his first goal of the season for Al-Nassr on Wednesday night. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner helped his club to a 3-1 victory over Al-Taawoun in the semi-finals of the Saudi Super Cup.
Ronaldo scored a goal just before the hour mark to secure Al-Nassr a resounding victory. The goal was a redemption for Ronaldo after he was forced to backtrack on his comments earlier in the match.
The 39-year-old stepped up to take a free-kick from a promising position on the edge of the box in the 11th minute. As he stood over the ball, Ronaldo was seen building up his courage as he confidently said in Portuguese: “I am the best.”
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner gave himself a pep talk before his glaring failure (Image: X)
His words of motivation did not have the desired effect, Ronaldo sent his shot over the crossbar, which was a real humiliation. The opposing goalkeeper did not even jump to try to save the ball, which landed harmlessly in the stand behind the goal.
Ronaldo has a misguided reputation as a free-kick specialist, but his record from set pieces suggests that this reputation is entirely unjustified. He has been heavily criticised for his frequent misses, particularly by Portugal fans, given his disappointing record at international level.
The former Manchester United ace has scored just one free-kick in 60 attempts for his country and has been heavily criticised at Euro 2024. In a game against Slovenia, he insisted on taking free-kicks for his team despite missing the target every time.
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Ronaldo was particularly embarrassed when he attempted to take a free-kick that was near the corner flag. Bernardo Silva looked set to cross into the box before Ronaldo made it clear he was going to score, his effort going miles wide of the posts.
His refusal to relinquish his set-piece duties was later questioned by former England ace Alan Shearer, who said: “It's down to Ronaldo. He's 39, he's clearly not as good as he used to be, he's not as quick as he used to be, he's not as sharp as he was in the box, but his movement is still very, very good.
“He obviously demands to play every game, he demands to take every free-kick. I mean, you have Bruno Fernandes in there who is a wonderful free-kick taker. [Ronaldo] “I had maybe four or five of them, and one of them was being shot at a ridiculous angle, so he had to get on it and shoot.”
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1936561/Cristiano-Ronaldo-free-kick-Al-Nassr-Saudi