Al-Nasr's Cristiano Ronaldo has suffered another trophyless exit, as his team was eliminated from the Saudi King's Cup following a 1-2 defeat to Al-Ittihad. Head coach Jorge Jesus suggested that his compatriot Ronaldo should not be substituted, blaming the loss on fatigue. After the match, when asked about the possibility of such a decision, Jesus drew a clear distinction between Ronaldo's situation and that of his former Real Madrid teammate, Karim Benzema. "This decision concerns only Al-Ittihad's coach," Jesus stated. "As for Ronaldo, the matter is completely different. He was not the same player today, and he was also not at his level in the previous match last week." Jesus noted that Benzema had only a few minutes left to finish the game. This defeat means that Ronaldo, who has scored 12 goals this season, continues to wait for his first official trophy with Al-Nasr, which he joined at the start of 2023. Meanwhile, Benzema, who scored against his former rival, posted a celebratory photo on Instagram, an act seen by many as a direct message to Ronaldo. Jesus attributed the loss to the team's exhaustion following their recent trip to India for an AFC Champions League victory. "I felt the team today was a bit heavy, tired. We were losing and needed forwards to play against a five-man defensive line. He wanted to bring on a faster striker. He came back from India sick and was very tired," the coach concluded.
