Is Cristiano Ronaldo playing for Al-Nassr against Benfica tonight?
Cristiano Ronaldo is expected to feature when Al-Nassr take on Portuguese giants SL Benfica in a pre-season friendly on Thursday, July 20. The two teams will meet at the Estadio Algarve in Almancil, Portugal, with kick-off scheduled for 9:30 pm local time (1:00 AM IST on Friday).
Ronaldo only recently returned to pre-season training with his club, having played the entirety of both of Portugal's UEFA Euro 2024 qualifiers last month. He scored once in the second match against Iceland, which was his landmark 200th appearance for A Selecao.
Prior to that, he scored 14 times in 19 matches for the Saudi club during the 2022-23 season after arriving from Manchester United in January this year.
Cristiano Ronaldo missed Al-Nassr's first two friendlies of the summer. Luis Castro's side first beat Alverca 2-0 before thrashing Farense 5-1 in those games.
The five-time Ballon d'Or winner returned to action earlier this week, captaining the Saudi Pro League giants in their friendly against La Liga outfit RC Celta Vigo. He played the entire first half, but was substituted just three minutes after the break.
A 51st-minute red card for centre-back Abdulelah Al-Amri put Al-Nassr at a disadvantage, and Celta obliged by going on a rampage to win 5-0.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. will now look to bounce back when they meet Benfica on Thursday. The reigning Portuguese champions, meanwhile, have beaten Southampton 2-0 and FC Basel 3-1 in their two pre-season friendlies so far.
Exploring Cristiano Ronaldo's record against SL Benfica
Cristiano Ronaldo has played against SL Benfica on five occasions in official matches - four times for Manchester United and once for Sporting CP. The Al-Nassr superstar failed to find the back of the net in any of those games.
The first of those games was a Liga Portugal clash back in the 2002-03 season. Ronaldo played 54 minutes of that contest for Sporting, but failed to score as Benfica ran out 2-0 victors.
He then clashed horns with As Aguias on four occasions in the UEFA Champions League, all in the group stages. In the 2005-06 season, he failed to record a goal or assist in the home and away games, which United won 2-1 and lost 2-1 respectively.
The two teams were drawn together again in the 2006-07 Champions League. This time, Cristiano Ronaldo laid out an assist each in both the home and away games, with the Red Devils winning 3-1 and 1-0 respectively.