Cristiano Ronaldo and one other Al-Nassr superstar set to miss AFC Champions League clash against Al-Sadd: Reports

Cristiano Ronaldo and Mohamed Simakan will reportedly not be available for Al-Nassr’s upcoming match against Qatari side Al Sadd in the AFC Champions League. The two sides will clash at Al-Awwal Park on Monday, December 2.

Both players have been important for the club this season and their absences could be crucial for Al-Nassr, who are currently third in their AFC Champions League group.

Cristiano Ronaldo has already notched up 15 goals and provided three assists for the club in 18 appearances this term.

Simakan has provided two assists for the Knights of Najd in 16 appearances across competitions. The French centre-back has missed just one game this season, due to suspension.

The Frenchman has been ruled out of the upcoming clash due to an injury. He was subbed off in the 69th minute and replaced by Ali Lajami in Al-Nassr’s 2-0 victory against Damac in the Saudi Pro League on November 29.

According to reports, Stefano Pioli has chosen to rest Ronaldo for their upcoming encounter against Al-Sadd.

Cristiano Ronaldo's former teammate told him he 'hated' the Al-Nassr star as a kid during conversation on flight

Cristiano Ronaldo's former Juventus teammate Paulo Dybala once told the Portuguese star that he practically hated him as a child. The Argentine forward shared the locker with Ronaldo at Juventus for three years.

The duo won multiple titles at the Serie A club, including Serie A and Coppa Italia. The 31-year-old, who currently plays for AS Roma, once told Cristiano Ronaldo that he used to hate him due to his rivalry with Messi, who is revered in Argentine. Dybala said (via SPORTbible):

"I spent three nice years with Cristiano, the team was very strong and he added something more. There’s a big rivalry between Messi and Ronaldo in Argentina. Once, we were flying out for a game, I was sitting at the back of the plane and he was slightly ahead."

Dybala added:

"At some point, he came to me, we spoke about life in general for a while, and I told him: 'As a kid, I practically hated you.' We laughed about it and we’ve always been on good terms."