A livid Cristiano Ronaldo lost his head on Monday evening after he was sent off for appearing to elbow and stamp on his opponent during Al-Nassr’s Saudi Super Cup defeat – before then inexplicably raising his fist towards the referee.
All hell broke loose in dying moments of the semi-final – in which Al-Nassr were trailing 2-0 – when the Real Madrid legend saw red following a clash with Al-Hilal’s Ali Al-Bulaihi near the touchline.
Al-Bulaihi tried to prevent the Portuguese superstar from grabbing the ball to take a quick throw-in, leading to the pair to square up with the ball still out of play.
Footage then appeared to show Ronaldo throwing an elbow in the direction of the Al-Hilal defender, sending him crashing to the floor and sparking a melee of pushing and shoving between the players, with the opposition unhappy at the challenge.
Another clip then appeared to show Ronaldo stamping on an already downed Al-Bulaihi – but the advertising boards obstructed the view, making it unclear whether Ronaldo made contact with the player.
The incident sparked a brawl between the two Saudi rival teams, with former Chelsea defender Kalidou Koulibaly rushing to the aid of his team-mate before being pushed, with Al-Nassr and former Man City defender Aymeric Laporte trying to act as peacemaker in the dramatic late scenes.
Ronaldo watched on as the two sets of players pushed and shoved each other but referee Mohammed Al-Hoaish soon brandished a straight red card, leaving the 39-year-old incensed at the match official.
So much so, Ronaldo motioned as if he wanted to throw a punch – or perhaps punch the ball he was holding – in the referee’s direction before withdrawing the action.
Having already landed himself in very hot water, Ronaldo then sarcastically patted one match official on the shoulder after being shown the straight red.
>>>The Sun
