Ronaldo scores 981st goal as Al-Nassr wins match

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 981st career goal while playing for Al-Nassr against Uzbekistan’s Neftchi Fergana. The match ended 3-1 in favor of Al-Nassr in the AFC Champions League Elite on Monday.

The 41-year-old forward found the net in the 42nd minute, increasing Al-Nassr’s lead. This goal came after Angelo Gabriel had opened the scoring in the 33rd minute at Al-Awwal Park in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Ronaldo’s goal happened after Sadio Mane sent a looping cross from the left. Aiman Yahya used his chest to direct the ball into Ronaldo’s path. The Portuguese star then shot into the bottom corner.

“The 41-year-old struck after Sadio Mane delivered a looping cross from the left that Aiman Yahya directed into Ronaldo’s path with his chest and the Portuguese forward lashed the ball into the bottom corner with a shot on the turn,” Reuters reported.

This goal brought Ronaldo to 981 career goals. He is now 19 goals away from reaching the 1,000-goal mark.

The match faced a delay of about an hour due to a security alert from Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defence. This warning came shortly before the match was set to start.

Reuters mentioned that the delay was due to security concerns caused by missile threats from Houthi rebels in Yemen. After the match finally kicked off, Al-Nassr took the lead with Angelo's goal before Ronaldo scored just before half-time.

Neftchi managed to reduce the gap six minutes into the second half with a goal from Alisher Odilov. However, their chances of coming back were hurt when Ikromjon Alibaev got a red card in the 65th minute for a foul on Mohamed Simakan.

Al-Nassr secured their win in the 78th minute when Anvarjon Gofurov scored an own goal, making the score 3-1.

This victory gave Al-Nassr their first points in the 2026/27 AFC Champions League Elite after losing 4-0 to UAE side Al-Ain in their first match.

Ronaldo had previously scored his 980th career goal during a 3-0 victory over Diriyah. He continues to chase the milestone of 1,000 career goals for both club and country.