"This is simply unacceptable" "Needs to be investigated" - Fans rip into Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr teammate after King's Cup final loss
Al-Nassr fans on X have blasted Cristiano Ronaldo's teammate Alex Telles after he skied his penalty in their loss to Al-Hilal in the King Cup of Champions (May 31).
10-men Al-Nassr suffered heartbreak as they lost 5-4 on penalties to Al-Hilal, who were reduced to nine men after Ali Albulayhi and Kalidou Koulibaly were dismissed for foul play. The clash ended 1-1 in normal time after Aleksandar Mitrovic (7') and Ayman Yahya (88') each netted a header.
Former Manchester United left-back Alex Telles stepped up to take Al-Nassr's first spot-kick during the penalty shootout after both teams failed to find a winner in stoppage time. However, he opted to go for power over placement, resulting in the ball being dispatched into the stands.
This is the second time this season that Telles has missed an integral penalty, impacting Cristiano Ronaldo and co. He also missed one in Al-Nassr's 3-1 loss on penalties against Al-Ain in the AFC Champions League quarter-finals (March 12), resulting in their elimination from the competition.
To make matters worse, Telles failed to make much of an impact on the game. The 31-year-old was dribbled past four times, lost nine duels, and completed just three out of eight attempted crosses, with an accuracy of 38 percent.
One Al-Nassr fan posted:
"Alex Telles missing his penalties in both the AFC Champions League then now in the King's Cup. This is simply unacceptable"
Another wrote:
"Alex Telles needs to be investigated.."
Here are some other fan reactions:
"Telles cost them the cup", one fan insisted.
"His teammate are just so useless especially that Alex Telles", another said.
"Alex telles should be out of the club. bro is damn bad", a user added.
"He is always missing it. I don’t know why they keep letting him play", one fan said.
"Ban him for match fixing", another posted.
"The guy thinks he is crossing to someone in the stands rather than the penalty", one fan cheekily said.
How did Cristiano Ronaldo perform in Al-Nassr's King's Cup final defeat against Al-Hilal?
Cristiano Ronaldo was left in tears after Al-Nassr were defeated 5-4 by Al-Hilal on penalties, losing the King Cup of Champions in the process and ending his campaign without a trophy.
Ronaldo hit the post with an acrobatic overhead kick in the second half. He also scored his penalty in the final shootout but was guilty of missing one big chance in normal time.
Furthermore, the 39-year-old completed just 17 out of his 24 passes with an accuracy of 71 percent. He also created one big chance, landed three shots on target from four attempts, and won six duels in total.
Despite falling short tonight, Ronaldo has had a phenomenal 2023-24 campaign, registering 44 goals and 13 assists in 45 appearances across all competitions.