A furious Cristiano Ronaldo gestured for the referee to be substituted during Al-Nassr's 1-0 win over Al-Ettifaq in the King Cup of Champions quarter-finals. Ronaldo had been angered by the performance of the referee in the closing stages of the first half of the match.
Ronaldo had been angered by the performance of the referee in the closing stages of the first half of the match.
His team-mate Talisca had appeared to have given Al-Nassr the lead in stoppage time at the end of the first half.
The Brazilian turned in a cross at the back post, with his effort initially awarded by Chilean referee Piero Maza.
His effort was chalked off following a VAR review, with Ronaldo adjudged to have been offside and interfering with play.
Ronaldo signaled to the bench for a substitution, before pointing at the referee.
Maza was forced to make another decision involving Talisca moments later, with the referee booking the Al-Nassr player after catching an opponent with his left arm.
Another VAR review led to the yellow card being upgraded to a red, with Talisca adjudged to have struck out with his arm.
Ronaldo had earlier been booked in the first half for dissent towards the referee after the 38-year-old had seen an appeal for a free-kick waved away.
The Portuguese star avoided a second booking for his outburst towards the official later in the half.
Al-Ettifaq, managed by Steven Gerrard, was also reduced to 10 men in the match with midfielder Ali Hazazi sent off for a foul which led to a brawl between the two teams.
Sadio Mane would score the decisive goal in the bad-tempered cup tie, with the former Liverpool star netting in the second period of extra time.
The result takes Al-Nassr into the last eight of the cup competition, which features teams from the top two tiers in Saudi Arabia.
