Cristiano Ronaldo converted his penalty but that was not enough for Al-Nassr as his team on Friday went down against Al-Hilal in the King of Champion Cup final in the shootout. (More Football News)
The heartbreaking loss meant that Ronaldo ended his second con♌secutive season in Saudi Arabia without a major trophy.
A devastated Ronaldo could be seen breaking down into tears after the match with teammates surrounding the Portuguese in an effort to console 🧔him.
🌜The video of the incident is going viral on the internet with fans showing sympathy for t🐈he 39-year-old veteran.
Al-Nassr trailed for a long time after Al-Hilal went ahead inജ just the seventh minute of the match taking place at the King Abdullah Sports City.
It got worse for Al-Nassr early in the second half when goalkeeper David Ospina, formerly of Arsenal and Napoli, was sent off for handling the ♏ball outside the area.
Al-Hilal was also reduced to 10 men after 86 minutes when Ali Al-Bulaihi was red-ca🅘rded for an apparent headbutt on Sami Al-Najei.
Seconds later, Ayman Yahya headed Al-Nassr level.
The score was stuck at 1-1 in the regulation🔜 time and the extra time also could not separate the two teams. The match went into penalties.
Ruben Neve💟s missed Hilal's first attempt as did former Manchester United defender Alex Telles for Al-Na🎉ssr.
Ronaldo, who earlier hit the post with a spectacular overhead kick, converted his penalty but could only watch as Bounou, a hero of Morocco's march to the semifinals of the 2022 World Cup, save💙d twice, the first from Ali Al-Hassan and then from Al-Nemer.
The saves gave Hilal an 11th King's Cup triumph
Silverware has eluded Ronaldo's side after they finished second in the Saudiꦛ Pro League tabl♌e for the last two seasons. He was the highest scorer in the league this season with a record 35 goals but Al-Nassr remained 14 points behind leaders Al-Hilal.
With AP inputs