Ronaldo-less Al Nassr drop points ahead of Capital Derby

In the absence of captain and talisman Cristiano Ronaldo, Al Nassr needed a late Anderson Talisca penalty to rescue a point in a thrilling 3-3 draw against Al Kholood at King Abdullah Sports City on Friday.

The Portuguese striker was rested by head coach Stefano Pioli ahead of next week's crucial Capital Derby clash with Al Hilal, while the Italian tactician opted to also leave midfielder Marcelo Brozovic on the bench.

It was Al Kholood who took the lead inside 12 minutes, when Jackson Muleka seized advantage of a quick counter attack, breaking free down the left and squaring for Myziane Maolida. The Comoros forward beat his marker and stroked the ball into the bottom corner for his second RSL goal of the season.

Al Nassr responded almost instantly, once Abdulrahman Ghareeb’s delivery from the corner was nodded on by Ali Lajami towards Aymeric Laporte, who headed home at the far post to restore parity.

Pioli’s men then took the lead for the first time on the night when Angelo squared for Sadio Mane, whose initial shot from inside the Al Kholood penalty area was parried by goalkeeper Marcelo Grohe. However, it was but as far as Talisca, who applied the finish with his right foot to make it 2-1.

Once more, Muleka and Maolida combined to find the back of the net for Al Kholood. An attack started by Alex Collado from the left saw Muleka feed Maolida, leaving the Comoros international to curl into the far corner to ensure the first half ended with the teams level at 2-2.

Yet things went from bad to worse for Al Nassr as Laporte had to be stretched off with an injury, being replaced by Mohammed Al Fatil. It leaves manager Pioli sweating on the Spanish international centre-back's availability ahead of the derby on November 1.

As for the Friday's match, it was more of the same in the second half when, on 72 minutes, Al Kholood substitute Hammam Al Hammami showed exceptional footwork to dance past Ayman Yahya and deliver a low cross towards Muleka, who was left with a simple tap-in to put the home side ahead again.

The DR Congo forward went from hero to zero in added time, though, as he handled the ball inside the hosts' penalty area, prompting the referee to point to the spot. From there, Talisca confidently stepped up and fired home for the equaliser.

A second successive draw since the arrival of manager Noureddine Ben Zekri sees Al Kholood escape the relegation zone, while Al Nassr drop points for the first time under Pioli. The Riyadh club, runners-up in last season's RSL, will go into Derby Week in third place, at least three points behind upcoming opponents Al Hilal.

The league leaders, and reigning RSL champions, host Al Taawoun on Saturday, in the final game of Matchweek 8.