Cristiano Ronaldo Laughs Off at Al Hilal’s Controversial Refereeing Call, Widening Their Title Lead With Al Nassr by 12 Points

Al Hilal has solidified its grip on the Roshn Saudi League. With 65 points, they are 12 points above 2nd-seeded Al Nassr. However, their recent performance against Al Riyadh wasn’t the most convincing. You could argue that a refereeing decision had a part to play in Al Hilal’s 1-3 victory. That moment certainly attracted the attention of Al Nassr’s talisman, Cristiano Ronaldo.

A recent post on Instagram by @o5ix_ is doing the rounds. The video showcased Al Hilal’s striker, Aleksandar Mitrovic attempting to strike the ball while on the run, but miscuing it. He looks to have been put off by an opposition defender coming through. While both players ended up on the ground, there was minimal, if not zero contact. But, the referee decided it was a penalty, which was converted by Ruben Neves. The referee even showed a yellow card to the defender. Seemingly mocking the decision, Cristiano Ronaldo commented with 9 laughing emojis.

Perhaps, more than the penalty itself, the Al Nassr faithful would have been irked by how that decision changed the momentum of the match. At that point in time, Al Riyadh was firmly in the driver’s seat having gotten the lead in the 52nd minute. However, this penalty, which was the 2nd of the match for Jorge Jesus’ side, sealed the game. They went on to score 2 more, one of which again was a penalty, scored by Mitrovic in the 93rd minute.

Read More: Referees Are Trying to Force Cristiano Ronaldo Leave Saudi Arabia by Purposely Disallowing His ‘Valid’ Goals, Claims Journalist

3 penalties in one game, and 6 in the last six games. While that’s quite a high number of goals from the spot, Cristiano Ronaldo expressed his thoughts through emoticons. However, he is not the first person to address this point.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s boss Luis Castro had also blasted the referees for ‘making Al Hilal win’!

The Riyadh derby in December saw Al Hilal come out victorious with a 3-0 win over the Knights of Najd. But, that result was also not without controversy. Cristiano Ronaldo had scored, but it was ruled out as an offside. This was just one of the many refereeing decisions that frustrated Luis Castro and he had a lot to say after the game.

He said, “The referee is the one who made Al Hilal win today”. He further elaborated, “There were two penalty kicks that were not awarded to us, and Al Hilal’s second goal should have been disallowed.” Judging from Castro’s comments, it seems he does not believe the decisions to be isolated mistakes but as biased judgments indeed.

It seems Cristiano Ronaldo seems to be on the same page as his manager. What do you think of his reaction on social media? Tell us below.

Read More: Coach Luis Castro Belittles Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr’s History, Says ‘Don’t Think They Won Championships Every Year’