Is Cristiano Ronaldo playing for Al-Nassr against Al-Shabab tonight?

Cristiano Ronaldo should start and lead the attack when Al-Nassr take on Al-Shabab in the Saudi Pro League on Tuesday (May 23). The team from Riyadh will want to build on their 2-0 victory over Al-Tai last time around.

Ronaldo returned to the scoresheet against Al-Tai. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner netted a penalty in the second-half to guide his side to all three points in the league. Anderson Talisca was the other goalscorer for interim manager Dinko Jelicic's side against Al-Tai.

Cristiano Ronaldo has been Al-Nassr's main attacking threat ever since he arrived at the club on a free transfer back in December. The Portuguese superstar should therefore find his place in the starting XI against Al-Shabab on Tuesday evening.

Ronaldo has formed a great attacking partnership alongside the aforementioned Talisca and Abdulrahman Ghareeb. The trio could therefore start together against Al-Shabab.

It is worth mentioning that Cristiano Ronaldo had to miss Al-Nassr's previous encounter against Al-Shabab. The former Manchester United forward was then serving a two-match suspension he received from the Football Association (FA) while he was playing in the Premier League. The game, which took place back in January, ended in a goalless draw.

With three matches remaining in the season, Al-Nassr still have an outside chance of winning their first league title since 2019. They have amassed 60 points from 27 games and are currently three points behind league leaders Al-Ittihad.

Al-Shabab, on the other hand, are currently third in the Saudi Pro League standings. They have picked up 53 points from their 27 games this season but are currently on a two-match losing run.

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Cristiano Ronaldo's time at Al-Nassr has been a resounding success so far

Cristiano Ronaldo's arrival at Al-Nassr has been a major boost to the team and the league, both on and off the field. The former Real Madrid forward has contributed immensely to his side's title charge this season.

Ronaldo has scored 13 goals and provided two assists in 17 games for the Riyadh-based side across all competitions. Despite only arriving in January, he is already the club's second-highest goalscorer this season, behind Talisca, who has netted 18 times.

Off the field, Cristiano Ronaldo has increased the popularity of Al-Nassr amongst football fans across the globe. Prior to his arrival, the club had only 853K followers on Instagram, which has increased to more than 14 million thanks to Ronaldo (according to ESPN).