
Cristiano Ronaldo scored his first goal in the Asian Champions League in a 3-1 win for Al-Nassr over Istiklol on Monday to put some of the spotlight back on soccer after an earlier match between host Sepahan of Iran and Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ittihad was controversially canceled.
The Saudi team did not take to the field at Naghsh-e-Jahan Stadium in Isfahan because of busts of Gen. Qassem Soleimani — who commanded Iran’s elite Quds Force before he was killed in a U.S. drone strike in neighboring Iraq in January 2020 — and other political banners, Saudi Arabia’s Al Ekhbariya TV reported.