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Cristiano Ronaldo increased his league tally to eight goals after his first-half hat-trick helped Al-Nassr defeat Damac.
Cristiano Ronaldo continued his domination of the Saudi Pro League as his first-half hat-trick helped Al-Nassr brush past Damac FC's weak opposition, winning 3-0.
Damac hosted Al-Nassr at the Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium as they attempted to halt the Ronaldo-led Knights of Najd. The 38-year-old proved to be too much to handle for the Faris Al-Jabub, as his hat-trick powered Al-Nassr past them.
The win sent Al-Nassr back to the top of the Saudi Professional League, unseating Al-Ittihad, who knocked them out of the league cup a few weeks ago. Damac continue to sit just outside the top six and are level on points with the two teams below them.
How it happened
Cristiano Ronaldo put Al Nassr ahead in the 18th minute of the game from the penalty spot. In the 23rd minute, he doubled Al-Nassr's lead by expertly connecting to Al Ghannam's delivery before unleashing a powerful shot with his left foot, burying the ball into the bottom left corner to beat Moustapha Zeghba.
The Portugal international grabbed a first-half hat-trick in the 44th minute of the game after a failed Damac attack led to a counter for the visitors. Ayman Yahya punched into the hosts' half of the pitch before releasing the ball to Ronaldo, who was left unmarked in the right half-space. The Portuguese received the ball in his path and angled his body properly before sending the ball to the far side of the goalkeeper.
Al-Nassr continued to push for a bigger scoreline, but it was not to be, and Ronaldo's first-half hat-trick was all the scoring on the day.
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