Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice in his first recreation in Saudi Arabia and Lionel Messi was additionally on the scoresheet as Paris St-Germain edged a Riyadh All-Star XI 5-4 in an exhilarating contest.
The exhibition match within the Saudi capital noticed two of the best gamers of all time sharing a pitch collectively for presumably the ultimate time.
Messi opened the scoring and Ronaldo netted twice for 2-2 at half-time.
Each gamers have been substituted off simply after the hour mark.
The 2 PSG centre-backs have been additionally on the scoresheet as Sergio Ramos added to Marquinhos’ pleasant end within the opening interval.
However the French aspect performed a lot of the sport with 10 males as Juan Bernat acquired a straight purple card for hauling down Saudi worldwide Salem Al Dawsari and Neymar additionally missed a penalty in a wide ranging first half.
Jang Hyun-soo’s header drew the All-Star XI degree at 3-3, however Kylian Mbappe’s penalty and substitute Hugo Ekitike’s composed effort put PSG out of sight.
Anderson Talisca drilled in a long-range comfort late in injury-time however there was not time for a dramatic equaliser.
Two GOATs face off
Ronaldo has needed to watch for his debut since an enormous transfer to Al-Nassr due to a suspension from his time at Manchester United.
However he’ll make his aggressive debut for his new aspect on Sunday, after they host Ettifaq at Mrsool Park.
So how becoming it was that his first recreation within the Center Jap nation – a high-profile and vastly aggressive pleasant – was in opposition to his outdated foe Messi, who lifted the World Cup in neighbouring Qatar only a month in the past.
The Argentina captain latched on to Neymar’s go and transformed the opener after simply two minutes, however the 37-year-old Portugal skipper was to not be outdone.
Ronaldo’s first was from the penalty spot, which was awarded after he was floored by PSG goalkeeper Keylor Navas’ forearm smash into his face, leaving him with a badly bruised cheek.
And he confirmed the starvation and need he nonetheless possesses for the second, an preliminary header hitting the publish then reacting quickest to transform, showcasing his trademark celebration for each objectives with the gang becoming a member of in.
Each gamers have been taken off on 61 minutes and will have confronted one another for the final time, except they cross paths once more within the twilight of their glittering careers.