Ronaldo, Mitrovic carry RSL form over to UEFA Nations League qualifiers | OneFootball

Cristiano Ronaldo and Aleksandar Mitrovic continued their super starts to the season on Saturday, with the pair transferring their fine Roshn Saudi League form to their respective national teams.

Ronaldo, who has scored five goals in six top-flight matches for Al Nassr to open this campaign, struck the second for Portugal in their 3-1 victory in Poland – a game that also featured Al Hilal midfielder Ruben Neves. Club teammate Joao Cancelo was an unused substitute.

Ronaldo’s goal, a straightforward finish from close range just before half-time, lifted the Portugal captain to 906 career goals, while it also extended his record as the all-time leading scorer in men’s international football, with 133.

In all this season, Ronaldo has 10 goals in 11 matches for club and country across all competitions; in fact, he has failed to score in only one outing, the 1-1 draw at home to Al Ahli in RSL Matchweek 3. The superb output already this term keeps the Al Nassr captain well placed to fight to retain the RSL golden boot he captured last season with a record-setting 35 goals.

Currently, Mitrovic is the man who leads the hunt for the RSL top-scorer’s prize, with the Al Hilal striker sitting on nine RSL goals. The Serbia international mirrored his club form for his country on Saturday, too, when he netted a superb solo goal in the team’s 2-0 home win against Switzerland.

However, Mitrovic was not the only RSL star to contribute significantly to the game in Leskovac: Al Ittihad goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic, a summer signing from Spain's RCD Mallorca, saved a 72nd-minute penalty to ensure Serbia kept a clean sheet.

Elsewhere, Al Nassr defender Aymeric Laporte helped maintain Spain’s unbeaten start to the UEFA Nations League qualifiers as the reigning European champions triumphed 1-0 at home to Denmark, while Damac’s Nicolae Stanciu featured heavily in Romania’s 3-0 victory in Cyprus.

In 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying, Damac teammate Francois Kamano was part of the Guinea side who defeated Ethiopia 4-1, while there was a slight scare for Al Hilal when goalkeeper Yassine Bono had to be substituted after 32 minutes in Morocco’s 5-0 win against Central African Republic. Bono is the reigning RSL Goalkeeper of the Year.

Meanwhile, Al Qadsiah midfielder Nahitan Nandez was unable to prevent Uruguay slipping to a 1-0 defeat in their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Peru.

The remains another round of international fixtures before the 2024-25 RSL resumes on Friday, with Matchweek 7.