Portugal captain, Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 981st career goal as Al-Nassr defeated Uzbekistan’s Neftchi Fergana 3-1 in the AFC Champions League Elite on Monday.
The 41-year-old forward found the net in the 42nd minute to double his side’s advantage after Angelo Gabriel had opened the scoring nine minutes earlier at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ronaldo’s goal followed a move involving Sadio Mane, whose looping cross from the left was redirected into the forward’s path by Aiman Yahya.
Ronaldo then struck the ball into the bottom corner to put Al-Nassr in control before the break.
The match had been delayed by about an hour following a security alert from Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defence shortly before the scheduled kick-off.
According to Reuters, the delay was linked to security concerns amid missile threats from Yemen-based Houthi rebels.
Neftchi pulled one back six minutes into the second half through Alisher Odilov, but their chances of recovering from the deficit suffered a blow when Ikromjon Alibaev was sent off in the 65th minute for a foul on Mohamed Simakan.
Al-Nassr secured the victory in the 78th minute when Anvarjon Gofurov scored an own goal to make it 3-1.
The result earned Al-Nassr their first points in the 2026/27 campaign after they suffered a 4-0 defeat to UAE side Al-Ain in their opening fixture.
Ronaldo’s latest strike came after he scored his 980th career goal in Al-Nassr’s 3-0 victory over Diriyah in the Saudi Pro League on Friday.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner is now 19 goals away from reaching the landmark of 1,000 career goals for club and country, a target he continues to pursue at 41.
