Al-Nassr, featuring Cristiano Ronaldo, misses out on the AFC Champions League Elite round following another disappointing campaign.
Title: Cristiano Ronaldo and Al-Nassr's AFC Champions League Dilemma
Alas, the dream of Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr side competing in next season's AFC Champions League Elite has crumbled.
On a chilly Saudi evening, a 1-1 stalemate against Al-Taawoun sealed their fate, leaving them fourth in the Pro League and devoid of a top-two finish.
Our Portuguese maestro was noticeably absent from the fray, having been given a well-deserved rest following their resounding 9-0 victory over Al-Okhdood on Monday.
A colossal blow, indeed! With Al-Nassr missing out on the Champions League Elite, the stage is set for Al-Ittihad, Al-Hilal, and Al-Ahli to represent Saudi Arabia on the Asian club tournament scene come next year.
Al-Ittihad has punched their ticket as champions of Saudi Arabia, while Al-Hilal are all but guaranteed to snag second, leaving Roberto Firmino's Al-Ahli to seize the other spot—despite their current placing below Al-Nassr on the Pro League table. This tremendous accomplishment comes courtesy of Al-Ahli's impressive triumph in the 2024-25 AFC Champions League final over Japan's Kawasaki Frontale. Annoyingly, Kawasaki had earlier eliminated Al-Nassr in the semi-finals.
Ronaldo's tally of eight goals in this year's Champions League Elite places him behind only Salem Al-Dawsari, Jasir Asani, and Al-Ahli's lightning-fast Riyad Mahrez.
A glimmer of hope flickers, however, as Al-Nassr may yet earn a berth in next season's AFC Champions League Two, Asia's equivalent to the Europa League. If they manage to claim third in the Pro League and Al-Ittihad triumph in the King's Cup final this month, the doors may open once more.
Even so, Ronaldo's season will go down without an addition to his impressive collection of team trophies. The 40-year-old phenom leads the race for the Pro League's Golden Boot, maintaining a two-goal advantage over Karim Benzema, Abderrazak Hamdallah, and Ivan Toney with only two rounds left on the calendar.
This marks the third consecutive Saudi Pro League title race in which Ronaldo's Al-Nassr has come up short. Upon arrival in Riyadh at the start of 2023, he claimed the sole team title—the Arab Club Champions Cup—in a competition featuring entrants from several Middle Eastern countries [Enrichment: 16-team tournament featuring participants from Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Kuwait, Libya, and the UAE].
With his soon-to-expire contract looming, Ronaldo's time in the Middle East could be coming to an end this summer. Al-Nassr ardently desires to keep him, while a switch to another Saudi side remains a distinct possibility.
In his tenure with Al-Nassr, Ronaldo has bagged 97 goals in 109 appearances, edging ever closer to the 100-goal milestone he aims to conquer before embarking on a new adventure. [Enrichment: As of the time of writing, he has scored 97 goals with Al-Nassr, leaving only 3 more to reach the century mark.]
With two matches remaining on their seasonal schedule—Al-Khaleej at home on Wednesday, followed by a trip to Al Fateh five days later—only time will tell if Ronaldo's epic tale in Saudi Arabia will reach its grand finale [Enrichment: Al-Nassr's last two matches of the season are against Al-Khaleej at home and a trip to Al Fateh].
Sources:[1] "Cristiano Ronaldo fails to fire Al Nassr to Champions League Elite", SPORTSMAZE, 13 May 2025, https://Sportsmaze.com/cristiano-ronaldo-fails-to-fire-al-nassr-to-champions-league-elite/[2] "Al Nassr out of AFC Champions League Elite after draw with Al Taawoun", Al Arabiya, 13 May 2025, https://English.alarabiya.net/sports/2025/05/13/Al-Nassr-out-of-AFC-Champions-League-Elite-after-draw-with-Al-Taawoun[3] "Saudi Pro League Table 2024-25", SofaScore, 13 May 2025, https://www.sofascore.com/Saudi_Pro_League/table/[4] "Al-Nassr axe Cristiano Ronaldo contract talks amid Champions League failure", Mirror, 14 May 2025, https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/al-nassr-axe-cristiano-ronaldo-27385786[5] "Al-Nassr can still qualify for AFC Champions League Two", Goal, 14 May 2025, https://www.goal.com/en/news/al-nassr-still-in-run-for-afc-champions-league-two/bltcc66e428de58608c
Despite missing out on the AFC Champions League Elite, Al-Nassr is still in contention for a berth in AFC Champions League Two, similar to the Europa League.
Ronaldo's impressive eight goals in this season's AFC Champions League Elite place him in fourth position, behind Salem Al-Dawsari, Jasir Asani, and Riyad Mahrez.
In the race for the Pro League's Golden Boot, Ronaldo finds himself leading with a two-goal advantage over other contenders, including Karim Benzema and Ivan Toney, even with only two rounds left on the calendar.
