Ronaldo hits 985 career goals with second-half hat-trick in Al Nassr's 5-3 win
- Cristiano Ronaldo scored three goals in 15 minutes as Al Nassr beat Al Kholood 5-3 on Thursday.
- The hat-trick took his reported career tally to 985 goals, 15 short of the 1,000 mark.
- Al Nassr moved to second in the Saudi Pro League, behind leaders Al Qadsiah on goal difference.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored a second-half hat-trick on Thursday as Al Nassr beat Al Kholood 5-3 in the Saudi Pro League, a result that lifted his reported career goal tally to 985.
The 41-year-old Portugal captain struck in the 66th, 72nd and 81st minutes at Al-Awwal Park, turning a 2-2 half-time scoreline into a home win. According to the reports, it was his first hat-trick of the season and his first treble for Al Nassr in more than two years.
Ronaldo had two first-half goals ruled out for offside, one of them after a VAR review. Al Kholood took the lead in the 16th minute through Julien Domingues, but Ângelo Gabriel levelled for Al Nassr eight minutes later.
Sadio Mané put the hosts ahead in the 38th minute, only for Antoin Essomba to equalise in first-half stoppage time. After the break, João Félix set up Ronaldo's first two goals and Mané provided the third. Domingues converted a stoppage-time penalty to complete his brace, but it changed nothing about the result.
Ronaldo celebrated on X afterwards: “Great win, great team performance. Happy to help with a hat-trick!”
Why it matters
The win moved Al Nassr to second place on goal difference, behind league leaders Al Qadsiah. Ronaldo now needs 15 more goals to reach 1,000 for his career, a milestone his supporters have been tracking closely.
For Nigerian fans who follow the Saudi league, the match was also a reminder of Mané's form. The Senegal forward scored one and set up another.
What happens next
Al Nassr will look to keep pace with Al Qadsiah at the top of the table, while Ronaldo chases the remaining goals to 1,000. Reports did not give the date of his next match.
