Al Nassr thrashed hosts Pakhtakor 6–2 in Uzbekistan, securing an emphatic victory in Tashkent despite the absence of captain and leading scorer Cristiano Ronaldo.
The match at Pakhtakor Central Stadium, part of the fourth round of the AFC Champions League Elite league stage, saw Al Nassr’s attacking stars share the goalscoring burden without their Portuguese talisman.
Abdullah Al-Hamdan opened the scoring before João Félix struck twice in succession. Flamarion pulled one back for the hosts, leaving the Saudi side 3–1 ahead at half-time.
Al Nassr continued scoring after the break through Abdulelah Al-Amri and Abdulrahman Ghareeb. Dostonbek Khamdamov then netted Pakhtakor’s second before Ângelo Gabriel completed the rout, becoming the visitors’ fifth different scorer.
Ronaldo was rested by Australian coach Ange Postecoglou, who explained before the match that a demanding schedule and extensive travel had prompted him to give his captain and French duo Kingsley Coman and Mohamed Simakan a break.
The victory lifted Al Nassr to six points from three matches, with two wins and one defeat. They had entered the Tashkent fixture ninth in the West region with three points and a postponed match against the UAE’s Al Wasl still to play.
Al Nassr began their campaign with a 4–0 defeat to Emirati side Al Ain before recovering to beat Uzbekistan’s Neftchi Fergana 3–1. Their victory over Pakhtakor took their tally to nine goals scored and seven conceded across their three matches.
A second successive win gives Postecoglou’s side fresh momentum in their continental campaign before they return to Saudi Pro League action against Al Hazem on Friday, November 6, with Ronaldo and several teammates having had their workloads managed ahead of that fixture.
