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Cristiano Ronaldo's schedule with Al Nassr has suffered numerous changes, involving competitions like the Saudi Pro League and Saudi Super Cup. Cristiano Ronaldo has officially made his first appearance of the 2026-27 season, a campaign he has indicated could potentially mark his final year as a professional soccer player. While the team’s initial roadmap was set, his upcoming schedule with Al Nassr will undergo a significant reshuffle following updates to both the Saudi Pro League and Saudi Super Cup calendars. First, the Saudi Pro League announced date adjustments for four distinct matchdays, impacting Matchdays 8, 9, 10, and 11. Matchday 8 was originally scheduled to take place prior to the upcoming international break, where Ronaldo is expected to join Portugal for UEFA Nations League duty, but those fixtures will now be played after the international window. The schedule shift was made in coordination with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation to allow extended preparation time ahead of the 27th Arabian Gulf Cup. With the tournament taking place between September 23 and October 6, the domestic league will continue play despite Saudi Arabia’s national team commitments, though the changes aim to optimize player recovery, according to an official statement published on the league’s website Sunday. Under the revised framework, the official date changes across the Saudi Pro League are as follows: Matchday 8: Shifted from September 17-19 to October 9-11Matchday 9: Shifted from October 9-11 to October 15-17Matchday 10: Shifted from October 15-17 to October 18-20Matchday 11: Pushed back to October 23 instead of October 22 to comply with mandatory rest periods Cristiano Ronaldo of Al Nassr celebrates with the Saudi Pro League Trophy. (Abdullah Ahmed/Getty Images) For Al Nassr, these calendar revisions directly alter their upcoming fixtures against Al Diriyah for Matchday 8 on September 17, Matchday 9 against Al Ahli, and Matchday 10 against SC Neom. The updated kickoff times for those individual matches remain to be announced, with King’s Cup and AFC Champions League Elite fixtures also slotted between domestic league dates. Saudi Super Cup schedule also moved The Saudi Super Cup presents another silverware opportunity for Ronaldo during his current run with Al Nassr. Typically held prior to the start of the domestic campaign, the tournament was pushed back on the calendar to accommodate player rest following the 2026 World Cup. After capturing the Saudi Pro League title last season, Al Nassr qualified for the tournament alongside Al Ahli, Al Qadsiah, and Al Kholood. Originally slated to run from November 30 to December 4, 2026, the four-team tournament has been adjusted to align with the broader league changes. موعدنا يتجدّد مع كأس السوبر السعودي 🗓️🏆تعرّفوا على المواعيد المحدّثة لمنافسات البطولة 🔽 pic.twitter.com/TONucYvstN— كأس السوبر السعودي (@SaudiSuperCup) August 23, 2026 The revised 2026-27 Saudi Super Cup semifinals are now scheduled for December 19 and 20, with the final set for December 23, 2026. Those matches will serve as Ronaldo’s final competitive appearances of the calendar year before Al Nassr return to action on February 8, 2027, against Al Shamal SC in the AFC Champions League Elite.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta during a training session (Picture: Getty) Mikel Arteta’s treatment of Gabriel Martinelli has caused ‘some discomfort’ within the Arsenal squad, according to reports in Brazil. Martinelli is closing in on a move away from Arsenal after being told to find a new club by Gunners boss Arteta. Having made his first-team debut in 2019, Martinelli is Arsenal’s longest-serving player and has racked up just shy of 300 appearances for the club. Martinelli began to fade out of Arteta’s plans last season but still contributed to Arsenal’s first Premier League title since 2004 and the run to the Champions League final. Exclusive Premier League previews Get ahead of the start of the season with our weekly football newsletter. Sign up now for free. The writing appeared to be on the wall for Martinelli when Arsenal completed a £34m deal for Christos Tzolis earlier in the summer. The audacious yet unsuccessful pursuit of Brazil icon Vinicius Junior from Real Madrid also suggested Arteta was planning to offload Martinelli. Arteta made his stance on Martinelli clear by leaving the 25-year-old out of Arsenal’s matchday squad for the Community Shield against Manchester City. Gabriel Martinelli is set to leave Arsenal (Picture: Getty) ESPN Brasil say that decision and the general treatment Martinelli has received in recent weeks has left the Brazilian ‘greatly disappointed’. The report adds that other members of Arsenal’s squad were also unhappy Martinelli was left out of the Community Shield altogether and therefore did not receive a winners’ medal. Martinelli was also left out of Arsenal’s Premier League opener against Coventry City and told to find a new club by Emirates Stadium bosses. Martinelli was left out of the Community Shield (Picture: Getty) Interest from Galatasaray did not excite Martinelli but he is set to approve a lucrative move to Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal. Globo Esporte say Martinelli has given the green light to the move having initially been reluctant to make the switch to Saudi Arabia. It was reported over the weekend that Arsenal wanted around £60m for Martinelli but ESPN Brasil claim the fee could be no more than £40m. Arsenal legend Ian Wright recently criticised the club’s treatment of Martinelli. Ian Wright criticised Arsenal’s treatment of Martinelli (Picture: Sky Sports) ‘In respects to Martinelli and the way Martinelli has been treated at the moment it really makes me feel uncomfortable,’ Wright told Sky Sports after Arsenal’s win over Coventry. ‘Because he always gives 100 per cent, I’m not saying he’s the greatest, he’s really come up with some big moments for Arsenal, some big games, he’s scored some very important goals… ‘The way he’s been treated at the end here, I know they might want him out, and there’s a lot of people saying, “yeah, maybe it’s time for him to move on”, but there’s ways of doing that and it should suit him as well, how he wants to leave. ‘Not being in the squad, not being spoken to, doesn’t know what’s going on, yes, I do know this, again, not being involved in the Community Shield squad, he doesn’t know what’s happening, I think he’s got a year left [on his contract]. ‘If you bring Vini [Vinicius Junior] in, that kind of level in, Martinelli can say to himself, “well, okay, they’ve brought him and Tzolis, I might be third [choice]”, but if you’re bringing Tzolis in, and he’s looking at Tzolis, you look at Madueke on the other [wing], you’re thinking to yourself, “I think I can still have it with these two, I still think I’ve got something to offer here”. ‘For him to be nowhere near it, it makes me feel sad for him. I’m just saying I think he’s done enough with this team, with this squad, to be treated with a little bit more respect than he’s being treated at the moment.’ Meanwhile, fellow Arsenal great Martin Keown has advised Arteta not to sell Martinelli as he closes in on a move to Saudi. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport
Cristiano Ronaldo's latest goal against Al Riyadh has helped the striker match his Premier League goal tally now in the Saudi Pro League, though he needed less than half the games at Al Nassr. Cristiano Ronaldo has remained the definition of a prolific goalscorer since joining Al Nassr despite entering the twilight of his career, hitting milestones that continue to push him closer to the mythical 1,000-goal mark. His latest strike in the Saudi Pro League saw the Portuguese superstar equal his career English Premier League goal output, achieving the feat in less than half the matches. Following an extended vacation after his 2026 World Cup campaign with Portugal, Ronaldo returned to Al Nassr with only a handful of training sessions under his belt before the start of the season. His delayed pre-season ramp-up kept him out of the squad for the team’s first two official matches of the 2026-27 campaign, preparing him for a return against Al Riyadh. Back on the team sheet, Ronaldo began Friday’s match against Al Riyadh on the substitute bench, entering the game in the 62nd minute with Al Nassr holding a comfortable 3-0 lead. The Portuguese legend capped off the victory after a driving run down the right flank from Ayman Yahya, who delivered a cross that Ronaldo controlled with his right foot before turning and striking a left-footed finish into the net in the 83rd minute. Cristiano Ronaldo reaches his Premier League mark in SPL With his goal against Al Riyadh, Ronaldo reached 103 career goals in the Saudi Pro League, matching the exact total he produced during his tenure in the Premier League. He reached the century mark in Saudi Arabia in three and a half years since signing with Al Nassr in December 2022. كريستيانو رونالدو.. وقصة أهدافه هذا الموسم تبدأ من هنا 🐐#الرياض_النصر | #دوري_روشن_السعودي pic.twitter.com/jnOASIDmI7— رياضة ثمانية (@thmanyahsports) August 21, 2026 Remarkably, the Al Nassr captain hit the 103-goal landmark in just 108 Saudi Pro League appearances, maintaining an extraordinary scoring pace of nearly a goal per game. By contrast, his 103 Premier League goals required 236 matches across two stints with Manchester United, meaning he matched that total at Al Nassr in 128 fewer matches. The vast efficiency gap stems primarily from Ronaldo’s tactical evolution over time; upon arriving at Manchester United in 2003, he operated primarily as a dynamic, wing-bound dribbler rather than a central finisher. By the end of his first tenure in England and during his 2021-2022 return, he had transformed into a refined central threat, accelerating his goal production exponentially. Ronaldo’s 103 goals in the Saudi Pro League now stand as his joint-second highest domestic league total, tied with his Premier League count. Having comfortably surpassed his 81 goals scored in Serie A for Juventus and his three domestic strikes in the Primeira Liga for Sporting Lisbon, his 311 La Liga goals with Real Madrid remain his all-time high for a single domestic league. How far is Ronaldo from his Man United goal mark? Last season, Ronaldo eclipsed his 101-goal mark with Juventus while at Al Nassr, establishing the Saudi Arabian side as the third-highest scoring club stop of his professional career. While his Real Madrid standard of 450 goals remains out of reach, his overall club tally with Manchester United could be eclipsed during his prospective final season as a professional player. Ronaldo’s total goal mark with Manchester United stands at 145 goals across 346 appearances in all competitions for the Red Devils. At present, his overall tally for Al Nassr stands at 130 goals in 149 matches, placing him just 15 goals shy of surpassing his Manchester United output given his current scoring rate and the extensive fixture list awaiting Al Nassr in 2026-27.
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