JEDDAH — Al Nassr towered in the peak of the fan-favorite Clasico and defeated hosts Al Ittihad with a historic 5-2 margin, narrowing the point gap with the league leader Al Hilal to seven points. This triumph marked Al Ittihad's third consecutive loss in the Saudi Professional League. Breaking a streak of bad luck in recent encounters with Al Ittihad, Al Nassr emerged with a refreshing historic win, boosting the morale of the capital's yellow-shirted team before their crucial upcoming match against Al Taawoun, which precedes a long break. Cristiano Ronaldo inscribed his name among the top goal scorers in the world this year by netting 53 goals across all competitions, including two goals in the match against Al Ittihad. Senegalese player Sadio Mane ended his goal drought, adding two goals against Al Ittihad. Anderson Talisca scored his first goal against Al Ittihad in the Saudi Professional League, as per Opta Sports statistics. Al Nassr increased its tally to 43 points, maintaining its position in second place behind Al Hilal, which stands at 50 points. Al Ittihad's points remained frozen at 28, placing them sixth in the league. Despite significant absences before the match, Al Ittihad was rejuvenated by the return of Moroccan player Abdulrazak Hamdallah to the starting lineup, along with Zakaria Hasawi and Hasan Kadesh, and the presence of Abdulrahman Al Oboud on the bench. Al Nassr, on the other hand, started with an ideal lineup, without notable absences, in their crucial postponed match against Al Ittihad, a decisive moment in their competition with traditional rival Al Hilal. Moroccan striker Abdulrazak Hamdallah ignited the match early by scoring against his former team Al Nassr at the 14th minute, giving the home team an early lead. Al Nassr responded quickly at the 18th minute when the referee awarded a penalty kick, successfully converted by Cristiano Ronaldo, tying the score swiftly. Ronaldo was denied a second goal by the crossbar in the 21st minute, following a powerful shot that bounced off and went out of play. The match proceeded relatively calmly with a clear advantage for Al Nassr, but Brazilian Talisca broke the silence with a goal, giving Al Nassr the lead shortly before the end of the first half. Hamdallah, striker for Al Ittihad, revisited Al Nassr's net early in the second half, equalizing the score and reigniting the excitement of the match. A pivotal turn occurred at the 66th minute when the referee awarded a penalty kick to Al Nassr and sent off Al Ittihad's Brazilian player Fabinho with a red card for his second caution. Ronaldo successfully converted the penalty, giving Al Nassr a third goal. Sadio Mane took charge of scoring the fourth goal against Al Ittihad, before returning to score a fifth goal for Al Nassr in the 82nd minute, sealing a record victory.
