Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr boss has reacted to the red card the forward received in their Saudi Super Cup defeat against Al Hilal on Monday night after he appeared to angrily elbow an opponent.
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The Riyadh-based outfit crashed out of the cup competition at the semi-final stage following a 2-1 defeat to Saudi Pro League leaders Al Hilal.
Ronaldo, 39, cut a frustrated figure throughout the encounter and eventually lost his cool in the 86th minute as his side trailed by two goals, one of them scored by former Barcelona winger Malcom.
In a rush to keep the game moving towards its latter stages, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner attempted to grab the ball for a quick throw-in, but was hassled by Saudi Arabia international Ali Al-Bulaihi on the touchline.
The Al Nassr No. 7 responded furiously, with clips online showing him shoving his opponent before throwing an elbow into his chest, sending the defender crashing to the ground.
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After being given his marching orders, Ronaldo was seen sarcastically applauding the referee and crowd as he headed for the dressing room.
Al Nassr manager Luis Castro has bemoaned the match official's decision to send his captain off, insisting he was treated unfairly.
"It is difficult to talk about the incident in which Ronaldo received the red card, and we saw several clips earlier in the season in which Ronaldo was provoked, and after seeing some of the pictures Ronaldo did not do anything that deserved to be sent off, and the opposing player acted," he said, according to the Daily Mirror.
"The contact was small between Cristiano and the opponent's defender. He made a play. The video referee was supposed to call the match referee to watch the clip of the expulsion."
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Ronaldo has been sent off 12 times in his club career, with this latest red card being his first in the Middle East.
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