Al-Nassr were denied two penalties Thursday evening while playing Shabab Al Ahli in their AFC Champions League qualification game, leaving Cristiano Ronaldo furious at halftime.
The Portuguese star was furious after his team was denied penalties on two separate occasions as his team trailed 2-1 at the interval. Al-Nassr, who had fallen behind 2-1, completed the comeback by scoring three goals in the closing 10 minutes.
After the referee had somehow disregarded the obvious spot-kick judgments, in Ronaldo’s mind, that was simply justice being served.
At halftime, Ronaldo was enraged and stormed off the field, shouting angrily to the referee before surprisingly pushing someone as he made his way to the dugout.
While his actions cannot be justified, his rage can, as the two judgments were rather appalling errors on the part of the referee.
On the first occasion, a ball was thrown across the box, and Ronaldo appeared ready to unleash an incredible overhead kick, but a defender’s outstretched hand stopped him.
It was obviously not in a natural posture for him to have his arm so far above his body, and Al-Nassr ought to have received a straightforward penalty kick. Surprisingly, the referee disregarded the complaints and didn’t concur with the protestations.
The second penalty call felt blatant. Before being effectively body-checked and knocked off his feet by a defender, CR7 charged into the area. The referee waived claims away once more despite the apparent stonewall’s appearance.
