Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Al-Nassr’s starting line-up expecting to become the central figure of the evening. Instead, the match against Al-Ettifaq was transformed by a red card, a teenage goalkeeper’s difficult debut and a remarkable second-half comeback. The Saudi champions eventually won 3-2 after appearing close to defeat.

Bento leaves his team exposed

According to Pedro Casteleiro’s report for A Bola, Bento was sent off in the 12th minute after bringing down Moussa Dembélé outside the penalty area. The Brazilian goalkeeper had left his line in an attempt to intercept a pass behind the defence. His mistimed challenge left Al-Nassr with ten players for almost the entire contest.

Al-Otaibi was introduced four minutes later for his first senior appearance. The 18-year-old entered without preparation and with his team already at a numerical disadvantage. He was then unable to stop two long-range efforts that placed Al-Ettifaq in control before half-time.

A debut becomes a nightmare

Ondrej Duda opened the scoring in the 31st minute with an effort that travelled through to the young goalkeeper. Álvaro Medrán added the second in first-half stoppage time, again shooting from distance. Both attempts appeared saveable, although Al-Otaibi had been placed in an unusually demanding situation by Bento’s dismissal.

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Ronaldo missed two opportunities and appeared increasingly frustrated as Al-Nassr’s problems grew. He was substituted at the interval, leaving João Félix and Sadio Mané to lead the attempted recovery. The change meant Ronaldo watched the entire turnaround from the bench.

Ten players rescue the evening

According to ESPN’s official match record, Mané reduced the deficit in the 74th minute before Abdulelah Al-Amri equalised three minutes later. Mané then completed the comeback with his second goal in the 90th minute. João Félix provided two assists during the decisive period.

Al-Otaibi also recovered sufficiently to make two saves and avoid conceding again after the break. His debut will inevitably be remembered for the two first-half goals, but it ended with an unexpected victory rather than defeat. Al-Nassr moved to nine points from three league matches, turning an evening of goalkeeper chaos into one of the season’s earliest dramatic comebacks.

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