Al-Nassr manager Jorge Jesus has explained why Cristiano Ronaldo has not travelled with the rest of the squad for Wednesday's AFC Champions League Two clash against Goa. The Portugal superstar has been in great form in the early weeks of the campaign for club and country but will play no part in his team's fixture as Al-Nassr keep a careful eye on the 40-year-old's fitness.
Al-Nassr face Goa without Ronaldo
Ronaldo was a notable absentee from the travelling squad for the match in India. The Portugal star scored a brilliant goal last time out as Al-Nassr beat Al-Fateh 5-1 in the Saudi Pro League but has been given a breather by manager Jesus. The Al-Nassr boss does still have plenty of attacking options for the game, with Sadio Mane, Kingsley Coman and Joao Felix making the trip to Goa for the match. However, Ronaldo's absence will be a big blow to fans in Goa who will have been hoping to catch a glimpse of the footballing legend.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportJesus explains why Ronaldo has been left out
Jesus has been asked about Ronaldo's absence and says it's purely a case of managing his workload. He told reporters: "Everyone loves Cristiano Ronaldo, and he has a lot of fans. We decided he would rest when we play outside Saudi Arabia. Everyone wants to see him, but we have to make choices and we've decided to leave him in Riyadh to prepare for the next game."
Ronaldo has scored five goals in five Saudi Pro League games so far this season and has netted another five times in four World Cup qualifiers for Portugal.
Ronaldo catches up with Djokovic
After being left out of Al-Nassr's game, Ronaldo has been spending time catching up with tennis great Novak Djokovic. The two stars has been snapped swapping shirts at Lisbon tennis club. Ronaldo handed over his famous yellow Al-Nassr jerseys and received a red Lacoste shirt as well as a signed racket, with the Portugese star's iconic 'Siiiuuuu' celebration scrawled on it.
Djokovic is clearly a big fan and has previously spoken of his admiration for Ronaldo. He told the Joy Forum in Riyadh: “Longevity is one of my biggest motivations. I really want to see how far I can go. If you see across all the global sports, LeBron James, he's still going strong, he's 40, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Tom Brady played till he was 40-something years old. I mean, it's unbelievable. They're inspiring me as well. So I want to keep going and that's one of the motivations I have.”
Al-Nassr scoring for fun this season
Al-Nassr may be without their talisman in Goa but should not lack for goals. New signing Felix has enjoyed a prolific start to his time at Al-Nassr, bagging eight goals in five league appearances, and has explained why the team are finding the back of the net so regularly.
"It's easy to play with him, sometimes it even ends up being good, because since he's Cristiano, they end up focusing more on him and leaving the others with more space. And that ends up helping the forwards, both me, Mané, and Coman . And yes, playing with him on the pitch is something else," he said, via A Bola.
"I always work to give my best; sometimes things work out, sometimes they don't. Of course, this context is more favorable, because I'm in my position, which brought me into football, which made a bit of my name in the beginning. And the team, the team is doing very well. The manager's ideas are good; they benefit me, my game, the attackers in general. That's why we've been scoring so many goals, and it's partly due to that, the manager's tactics and ideas."