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Ronaldo Answers 'Best Ever' Ballon d'Or Vote With Al Nassr Hat-Trick

Three goals in 15 second-half minutes at Al-Awwal Park took the 41-year-old to 985 career goals — 15 short of 1,000.

Cristiano Ronaldo in Al Nassr colours during a training session in September 2023 (file photo)
File photo: Cristiano Ronaldo in Al Nassr colours, September 2023. Photo: Meghdad Madadi / Tasnim News Agency, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons — Meghdad Madadi / Tasnim News Agency via Wikimedia Commons

Two days after fans voted his 2008 Ballon d'Or the greatest edition in the award's history, Cristiano Ronaldo answered on the pitch: a 15-minute second-half hat-trick that powered Al Nassr to a wild 5-3 win over Al Kholood in the Saudi Pro League on Thursday night.

A first half that refused to settle

The Matchday 12 meeting at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh never followed a script. Ronaldo had an early goal ruled out for offside in the 10th minute, and Al Kholood struck first when Julien Domingues finished off Abdulrahman Al-Dawsari's cross in the 16th.

Al Nassr hit back through Ângelo in the 24th minute after a neat combination with João Félix, then Sadio Mané made it 2-1 in the 38th. The visitors would not lie down: Antoine Essomba levelled at 2-2 deep in first-half stoppage time, and Ronaldo thought he had restored the lead right on the whistle — only to be denied by the flag for a second time.

Fifteen minutes of Ronaldo

The second half belonged to the 41-year-old. In the 66th minute he turned in João Félix's cutback for 3-2. Six minutes later he headed home the fourth, again created by Félix. And in the 81st he completed the hat-trick after Mané carved the opening — three goals in 15 minutes, 5-2 on the board.

Félix finished the night with four assists. Domingues converted a stoppage-time penalty for Al Kholood to complete his own brace, but 5-3 was where the chaos stopped.

What the numbers say

  • 985 career goals — Ronaldo is now 15 short of the 1,000 mark, already the all-time leading scorer in football history, 49 clear of Lionel Messi's 936.
  • 67th career hat-trick — his seventh for Al Nassr and his first for the club since May 2024, ending a wait of nearly two and a half years.
  • Table: the win keeps Al Nassr second in the Saudi Pro League on 28 points, level with leaders Al-Qadsiah, with Al Hilal a point further back.

"Great win, great team performance. Happy to help with a hat-trick!" Ronaldo posted on X after the final whistle.

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