Saudi teams dominated the tournament's West zone league stage, with four-time Asian champions Al Hilal leading Al Ahli and Al Nassr in the top three in the final table.
Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr have signed 21-year-old Colombian forward Jhon Duran from Aston Villa for an undisclosed fee, the Premier League club announced on Friday.
Ronaldo stepped up to take the penalty and the 39-year-old sent the goalkeeper the wrong way to score his sixth goal of the league campaign in the seventh minute of stoppage time.
Cristiano Ronaldo insists he is focused on being the perfect team member at Saudi side Al Nassr rather than collecting more individual accolades in the twilight of his career.
His Portuguese predecessor Castro was the third coach to depart Al Nassr since Ronaldo's groundbreaking arrival in early 2023.
The futures of Napoli striker Victor Osimhen and England international Ivan Toney are set to dominate the final day of the European transfer window on Friday as Chelsea continue their frenzied pursuit of new signings.
Ronaldo's latest goal places him just two goals shy of achieving 900 career goals.
The Belgium captain has six Premier League crowns and one Champions League title, as well as two FA Cups and five League Cups to his name since his 2015 switch from German side VfL Wolfsburg.
Neymar is set to miss the start of the next Saudi Pro League season as he recovers from a serious knee injury, Al Hilal's coach said Tuesday.
The 39-year-old scored back-to-back hattricks in three days.
Al Nassr striker Cristiano Ronaldo has once again silenced his critics after grabbing a hat-trick. The 39-year-old scored three second half goals against Al Tai to bring up 33 goals in all competitions this season for the Saudi outfit.
Cristiano Ronaldo has been suspended for one match after appearing to make an obscene gesture following Al Nassr's 3-2 win over Al Shabab, the Disciplinary and Ethics Committee of the Saudi Football Federation (SAFF) said on Wednesday.
The incident was not caught on television cameras, but some Saudi pundits said Ronaldo should be sanctioned.
Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos on Monday doubled down on his criticism of players moving to Saudi Arabia, due to the human rights situation in the country.
Al Nassr crushed Inter Miami 6-0 as injury ruled Cristiano Ronaldo out of a much-hyped showdown with Lionel Messi, who was limited to a late substitute appearance in Thursday's friendly in Riyadh.
The player's contract was set to expire at the end of the campaign.
Cristiano Ronaldo insisted Friday that the often derided Saudi Pro League was "more competitive" than French Ligue 1.
When Karim Benzema joined Saudi Arabia's Al-Ittihad this year on a lucrative deal, a comfortable pre-retirement stint seemed assured for the Ballon d'Or winner.
"Great victory and I'm thrilled to announce my 50th goal in 2023," the 38-year-old Portuguese wrote on Instagram
