Ronaldo Hands Man of the Match Award to Al-Hamdan

Cristiano Ronaldo created a special moment for Al-Nassr after their 3-1 victory over Al-Fayha in the Saudi Pro League, handing his Man of the Match award to teammate Abdullah Al-Hamdan despite earning the honour himself. Al-Hamdan, who also delivered an impressive performance, later described Ronaldo as a football legend and said he hoped to learn from the Portuguese star.

Al-Nassr defeated Al-Fayha 3-1 in the 11th round of the Saudi Pro League at Al Majma’ah Sports City Stadium on Friday. Al-Hamdan opened the scoring to put his team ahead before Ronaldo doubled the lead. Al-Fayha’s Theo Bongonda pulled one back in the second half, but Angelo scored Al-Nassr’s third goal to seal the victory. Another goal by Ronaldo was ruled out for offside.

With his goal in the match, Ronaldo took his professional career tally to 982 goals. The 41-year-old is now just 18 goals away from the much-discussed milestone of 1,000 career goals. He still has several opportunities to add to his tally for Al-Nassr before the end of the year.

Although Ronaldo was named Man of the Match, he chose to give the award to Al-Hamdan. After the final whistle, he called his teammate over and personally handed him the trophy. The two then posed for a photograph together, and the moment quickly spread across social media.

Al-Hamdan was deeply moved by the gesture, saying it was a great honour to play alongside one of football’s legends. He added that the experience would inspire him to perform even better in the future.

Praising Ronaldo, Al-Hamdan said the Portuguese star was an exceptional player both on and off the pitch. His teammates learned a great deal from him, he said, highlighting Ronaldo’s willingness to guide younger players. Al-Hamdan expressed hope that they would achieve further success together and bring joy to Al-Nassr supporters.

Following the victory, Al-Nassr have 25 points from 11 matches, the same as Al-Qadsiah. The two teams are competing for the top spot, with goal difference currently separating them. However, alongside the win, Ronaldo’s career tally of 982 goals and his decision to hand his award to Al-Hamdan emerged as two of the match’s most talked-about moments.