Cristiano Ronaldo fails and should end another season without titles at Al-Nassr | OneFootball

Fighting for his last real chance to win a title this season, Cristiano Ronaldo saw the opportunity slip away with Al-Nassr's shock defeat by Kawasaki Frontale, who won 3-2 in the AFC Champions League semi-finals. With this result, the Japanese advanced to the final for the first time.

Al-Nassr tried to control the action in the first few minutes, but Frontale didn't make it easy for the Saudis, using attacking transitions down the flanks. The Japanese opened the scoring after 10 minutes thanks to Ito's superb strike, following a great move by Brazilian Marcinho down the left.

Under the command of Stefano Pioli (former Milan coach), Al-Nassr didn't let up their intensity and went in search of an equalizer through Sadio Mané after a deflected shot in the box. But soon after, another defensive lapse saw Ito win the ball back in attack and set up a great individual move for Ozeki to take advantage of the rebound from goalkeeper Bento's shot.

Al Nassr v Kawasaki Frontale: AFC Champions League Elite Semi Final | Yasser Bakhsh/GettyImages

The second half was played with less intensity for most of the time, thanks to Kawasaki Frontale's well-organized defense, and they took advantage of their only real chance to clinch the win. Erison made an excellent individual run on the back line and broke into the box with space for Lenaga to finish on goal.

Playing in front of their home fans, Al-Nassr tried to react and got their second goal in the 87th minute, with Yahya receiving the ball on the edge of the box and shooting wide. The final minutes were very exciting and the Saudis piled up dangerous chances, leaving the ball with Cristiano Ronaldo, but goalkeeper Yamaguchi held all the shots and ensured the Japanese's heroic qualification.

Is Cristiano Ronaldo's career in Saudi Arabia a disappointment?

FBL-ASIA-C1-NASSR-KAWASAKI | -/GettyImages

Cristiano Ronaldo arrived at Al Nassr making a huge impact with many goals and huge media success, helping to develop Saudi soccer. However, CR7 has not yet had the opportunity to win any major titles, with the only achievement being the Saudi Super Cup in January 2023. In other words, a very disappointing fact considering the investment made in signing the star.