Five-time «Golden Ball» winner Cristiano Ronaldo, who refused to come to Ashgabat for the match against «Arkadag» in the 1/8 finals of the AFC-2 Champions League, was left without a trophy of this tournament. This became known after his club, «Al-Nassr» of Saudi Arabia, lost in the final to Japanese club «Gamba Osaka» with a score of 0:1.
The final game took place in Riyadh. The only goal was scored in the 30th minute by the Turkish striker of «Gamba» Denis Hummet.
Ronaldo started for «Al-Nassr» and played the full match, as did the two other top stars of Saudi Arabian club, João Félix and Sadio Mané. However, they were unable to help their team win the trophy.
The only consolation this season for the 41-year-old Portuguese star was the victory with his team in the Saudi Arabian championship. In this way, Cristiano Ronaldo became the champion of this country for the first time since playing for «Al-Nassr» in 2023. Previously, with this club, he was able to win only the Arab Champions Cup (2023).
Let us remind that in the 1/8 finals of the AFC-2 Champions League, the reserve team of «Al-Nassr» twice won with the same score of 1:0 in Ashgabat and Riyadh against «Arkadag». In those matches, the Saudi club was led by the renowned 71-year-old Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus, who left his post as head coach after the team's victorious finish in the Saudi Arabian championship.
The AFC-2 Champions League is the Asian equivalent of the Europa League, making it the second most important tournament on the continent. «Gamba Osaka» became the first Japanese club in history to win the tournament.
