Cristiano Ronaldo scores 979th goal as Al Nassr win 2-1

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 979th career goal as Al Nassr edged past Abha 2-1 in the Saudi Pro League at Al Awwal Park in Riyadh on Wednesday.

The 41-year-old Portuguese forward opened the scoring in the 22nd minute with a trademark header, helping Al Nassr bounce back from their 2-1 defeat to Al-Ittihad in Jeddah on Saturday.

Ronaldo rose above his marker to meet Angelo’s inswinging corner near the six-yard box and powered a downward header towards the far post. The ball struck the post before crossing the line.

It was Ronaldo’s third league goal of the 2026-27 Saudi Pro League season in five appearances and his 132nd for Al Nassr since joining the club.

More significantly, the goal took his official career tally to 979, leaving him just 21 goals short of the 1,000-goal milestone – a landmark no player has reached in competitive senior football.

Al Nassr continued to dominate after the break and appeared to have put the result beyond doubt in the 58th minute when Al Hamddan fired into the far corner.

Abha refused to give up, though, and pulled one back in the 75th minute through Nabil Fekir.

The win leaves Al Nassr level with Al Hilal and Al Qadsiah at the top of the Saudi Pro League table, with all three teams having won five of their opening six matches.