"You know where the mistake is, you're just afraid to say it" - Talisca defends Al-Nassr star after Cristiano Ronaldo's team lose to Al-Orobah

Former Al-Nassr star Anderson Talisca has defended Cristiano Ronaldo's teammate Jhon Duran after Saudi news outlet @ByanNassr questioned the latter's performance on X. His tweets surfaced soon after Al-Nassr suffered a disappointing 2-1 loss against Al-Orobah in the Saudi Pro League on February 28.

Jhon Duran has been in excellent form alongside Cristiano Ronaldo since joining Al-Nassr from Aston Villa during the January transfer window. The 21-year-old has scored four goals in five appearances across all competitions for the Knights of Najd this season.

However, Duran struggled for answers during their loss against Al-Orobah. He created only one chance for his team, and landed one shot on target from an attempted three. He missed one big chance in the process, and lost possession 12 times.

Talisca replied to @ByanNassr's post questioning Duran's performance:

"He is a great player and will do a lot for this club. The problem is that you always want to find someone to blame for the defeats, but you don't see where the real mistake lies. Stop acting like this all the time. You know where the mistake is, you're just afraid to say it, lol."

He added:

"And on top of that, you want to do to Doran what they did to me, to benefit others.”

Talisca joined Al-Nassr in 2021, plying his trade alongside Cristiano Ronaldo since the latter joined the club in January 2023. While the Brazilian flourished individually, the 31-year-old failed to win over the Al-Awwal faithful this season, leading to his departure to Fenerbahce on January 27, 2025.

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Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr in danger of falling out of Saudi Pro League title race following loss against Al-Orobah

Cristiano Ronaldo and Co.'s Saudi Pro League title aspirations were dealt a severe blow after they suffered a 2-1 loss against Al-Orobah. They are third in the league standings with 47 points from 23 games, nine points behind leaders Al-Ittihad who have a game in hand.

The Knights of Najd also failed to cover ground on second-placed Al-Hilal who were defeated 3-2 by Al-Ahli on Friday. Having already been knocked out of the Saudi Super Cup and King Cup of Champions, Stefano Pioli's men only have the SPL and AFC Champions League to target this season.

All eyes will be on Cristiano Ronaldo to inspire his side back to winning ways. They next face Esteghlal in the first leg of the AFC Champions League Round of 16 on Monday, March 3.

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