Controversial decisions are becoming a recurring theme in the Saudi Pro League matches. It was once again the case in the recent game between Al Nassr and Al Ittihad. The match was filled with drama, but it was a controversial penalty decision that Cristiano Ronaldo converted, which has left Al Ittihad boss Marcelo Gallardo far from pleased.

Al Ittihad, the home team, suffered a disappointing 2-5 loss to Al Nassr, who received two penalties during the game. The controversy in the match arose during the second one when, after VAR interference, Fabinho received a red card. The penalty decision that followed completed Ronaldo’s brace, and Al Nassr became unstoppable after that.

Al Ittihad boss blames the penalties for Al Nassr’s win

After being 10-man down, Al Ittihad had a troublesome time containing the relentless attack from Al Nassr and ultimately faltered. Gallardo swiftly voiced his discontent with the officials’ decisions in his post-match comments. “The second match we played, and there was a shortage in the team in the event of expulsion,” he said.

While the Argentine manager acknowledged that “We missed several chances in front of the goal,” he firmly believes that the penalty and the red card ultimately led to Al Ittihad’s devastating loss. He did not attempt to hide his frustration and lamented, “Al Nassr was able to win after two penalty kicks and the expulsion.”

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In recent months, there have been a series of similar incidents that even prompted demands for the involvement of International referees in officiating Saudi matches. Nevertheless, Al Ittihad currently trails table leader Al Hilal by 22 points. On another note, Cristiano Ronaldo has taken a significant stride toward creating history.

Cristiano Ronaldo, once again the top scorer of 2023

Thanks to his brace against Al Ittihad, Cristiano Ronaldo brought his total 2023 goal tally to an impressive 53. With this milestone, he has surpassed the likes of Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe (both standing at 52 goals) as the top goalscorer of the year. However, it’s worth noting that both Kane and Mbappe have already concluded their matches for this year.

Dive Deeper: Cristiano Ronaldo Ends Al Nassr’s 5-Year Disastrous Spell With a Win vs Karim Benzema’s Al Ittihad

On the other hand, Ronaldo still has one remaining match against Al Tawooun. If fate allows, the Portuguese icon will probably conclude 2023 as the leading goal-scorer of the year – a remarkable accomplishment he last attained in 2015. Despite being 38 years old, CR7 shows no signs of slowing down.

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