Ronaldo Hits 981st Career Goal as Al-Nassr Beat Neftchi 3-1
Cristiano Ronaldo moved to within 19 goals of the historic 1,000-career-goal milestone after scoring in Al-Nassr’s 3-1 victory over Uzbekistan’s Neftchi Fergana in the AFC Champions League Elite on Monday.
The 41-year-old Portuguese superstar struck in the 42nd minute at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh to double Al-Nassr’s lead after Angelo Gabriel opened the scoring nine minutes earlier.
Ronaldo finished clinically after Sadio Mane delivered a looping cross from the left and Aiman Yahya directed the ball into his path with his chest, allowing the forward to fire into the bottom corner.
The goal took Ronaldo’s career tally to 981 for club and country, extending his remarkable pursuit of the 1,000-goal landmark.
Neftchi pulled one back six minutes after the restart through Alisher Odilov, but their hopes of mounting a comeback were dented when Ikromjon Alibaev was sent off in the 65th minute for a foul on Mohamed Simakan.
Al-Nassr sealed the win in the 78th minute when Anvarjon Gofurov turned the ball into his own net.
The victory earned Al-Nassr their first points in the 2026/27 campaign following a 4-0 defeat to UAE side Al-Ain in their opening fixture.
Ronaldo had scored his 980th career goal in Al-Nassr’s 3-0 win over Diriyah in the Saudi Pro League on Friday before finding the net again against Neftchi.
However, Monday’s encounter was delayed by about an hour following a security alert issued by Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defence shortly before kick-off, amid reported security concerns over missile threats from Yemen-based Houthi rebels.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner continues to close in on the 1,000-goal milestone as his remarkable career enters another historic chapter.
