Cristiano Ronaldo is reportedly set to miss Al-Nassr’s Saudi Pro League season opener against Al-Fateh this Saturday, August 15. According to the Saudi outlet Ariyadhiah, as cited by Al Nassr Zone, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner will not be included in the matchday squad for the highly anticipated fixture. While the club has not provided an official reason for his absence, the decision appears to be a precautionary measure to manage the 41-year-old’s workload following a demanding summer.
The forward recently returned to club training, marking the occasion with a social media post captioned “BACK.” This return followed a busy period that included leading Portugal through five matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where he accumulated 441 minutes of play and scored three goals. Additionally, Ronaldo recently married his long-term partner, Georgina Rodriguez, in a private civil ceremony held in Cascais earlier this week.
Ronaldo remains a pivotal figure for Al-Nassr, having played a central role in the club’s successful league title campaign last season. During that term, he recorded 28 goals and two assists across 30 league appearances, maintaining an average of one goal contribution per game. In total, he concluded the season with 35 goals and four assists in 41 appearances across all competitions.
As the new season begins, the veteran striker is motivated by the pursuit of a historic 1,000 career goals milestone. He currently sits at 976 goals, requiring only 24 more to reach the landmark. Fans and observers alike remain interested to see how many goals he can add to his career tally during this upcoming campaign as he continues to drive his team forward.
At 41-years-old, Cristiano Ronaldo still took on the immense responsibility of leading his nation at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
He featured in all of Portugal’s five games in the tournament, playing a whopping 441 minutes and recording three goals to his name.
He was the difference maker yet again, providing answers in front of goal as he led the club to claim the league title in fantastic fashion.
The report did not specify the reason behind the decision and Al-Nassr are yet to comment publicly about it.
He announced his return by sharing pictures from his training session on his Instagram page, and captioned it “BACK”.
The post pulled a lot of attention from fans who have been eagerly anticipating his comeback.
Unfortunately, the supporters will now have to wait a little longer before they see the attacker in action as he’s ruled out from the SPL opener.
Ronaldo will be eager to continue his goalscoring exploits with Al-Nassr this term, with his push towards reaching the 1,000 career goals milestone set to serve as extra motivation.
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