Video: Al-Nassr restore their Asian fortunes on a night of injuries and Ronaldo brilliance

Video: Al-Nassr restore their Asian fortunes on a night of injuries and Ronaldo brillianceGOALGOALGOALA superb showing from Al-Alami

Al Nassr got their AFC Champions League Elite campaign back on track on Monday evening, beating Uzbekistan’s Navbahor 3-1 in the second round of matches. Cristiano Ronaldo shone. Drama and injuries, though, left plenty for “Al Alami” to worry about.

Three points mattered here. Al Nassr had opened their continental journey with a heavy 4-0 defeat away to Al Ain of the UAE, and this time Angelo and Ronaldo found the net, with the Uzbek side’s defender turning the ball into his own goal to complete the scoring.

Angelo opens the scoring: Ronaldo doubles the lead

Al Nassr set out to kill the tie off early, only to be dealt an unexpected blow when France’s Kingsley Coman limped off injured in the 13th minute. The coaching staff had to reshuffle on the spot. From there, the hosts gradually took control.

Angelo broke the deadlock in the 33rd minute, meeting a cross inside the box and turning the ball into the net to give Al Nassr the lead.

Cristiano Ronaldo doubled it three minutes before the interval. His 42nd-minute strike handed his side a relatively comfortable cushion at the break.

Bushell’s error brings Nevicci back in, and an own goal

Navbahor halved the deficit six minutes after the restart. Nawaf Boushal’s catastrophic error let Alisher Odilov in, and the Uzbek striker found the Al-Nassr net to bring the tie back to life, piling pressure on the hosts to protect their lead.

Then came the moment that killed it. Ali Bayev caught Al-Nassr defender Mohamed Simakan with a violent challenge on 65 minutes and the referee reached for red, leaving Navbahor to play out the rest of the night with ten men.

Al-Nassr made the extra man count on 78 minutes. Bojan Cecer turned the ball into his own net, handing “Al-Alami” a third that stretched their lead and all but settled the contest before the closing stages.

Al Nassr led 3-1, but the night wasn’t without worry. Mohamed Simakan was forced off after picking up an injury from the tackle that earned the Nefchi player a red card, and that came after the side had already lost Coman early in the first half.

An important win, then, and one that puts Al Nassr back on the path of positive results in the continental competition. Their tally climbs to three points, earned through attacking efficiency and ruthless exploitation of their opponents’ numerical disadvantage.

The coaching staff now wait on medical examinations to determine the nature of the injuries to Coman and Simakan. The hope is to build on this victory and push on with a better Asian campaign.