Tension in Saudi Arabia: Ronaldo clashes with Julián Palacios's brother | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo once again had a tense clash with Argentine Matías Palacios during Al Nassr’s crushing 4-0 defeat to Al Ain in both teams’ debut in the 2026-27 AFC Champions League.

The match was played this Tuesday at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in the city of Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, and was marked both by the unfavorable result for the Saudi side and by the latest chapter of tension between the two players.

The Portuguese star started and wore the captain’s armband, but delivered a subdued performance: he failed to score in 90 minutes, leaving his goal tally unchanged at 979. Images of the clash with Palacios, which circulated on social media, showed yet another episode of friction between the two footballers in the middle of the match.

The team coached by Ange Postecoglou suffered a thrashing that matched its worst-ever defeat in the AFC Champions League, despite fielding a lineup packed with stars: alongside Ronaldo, João Félix, Sadio Mané, Samu Costa, Simakan, and Íñigo Martínez all started.

Houssine Rahimi opened the scoring in the 25th minute and struck again in the 63rd, while Soufiane Rahimi extended the lead in the 72nd minute in a play that required an extensive VAR review before being confirmed. Georgios Giakoumakis completed the rout in the 85th minute, assisted by Soufiane Rahimi.

Ronaldo came close to winning a penalty early in the match after losing his balance inside the box following a run against defender Rami Rabia, but Uzbek referee Ilgiz Tantashev did not award a foul. In the second half, the Portuguese forward tried an overhead kick that went over the crossbar and struck a free kick late on, without success.

Tuesday’s clash was not an isolated incident in the on-field relationship between the two players. In November 2024, during another meeting between the same teams in the same competition, Ronaldo and Palacios were involved in a confusing incident that went viral at the time.

On that occasion, amid a tussle for a loose ball during a corner, the Portuguese star fell to the ground and grabbed Palacios by the neck with a hold reminiscent of a mixed martial arts move. The Argentine, who played in the youth ranks of La Albiceleste, complained to the referee about an alleged elbow, but the official did not call any foul and booked the former San Lorenzo player for his protests. That match ended in a 5-1 win for Al Nassr, with Ronaldo also getting on the scoresheet.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.