Cristiano Ronaldo just had his best performance in Saudi Arabia, scoring 4 goals in a single game
- Cristiano Ronaldo scored four goals in a single game Thursday.
- The performance follows his manager saying Ronaldo's presence makes things difficult for the team.
The Cristiano Ronaldo era in Saudi Arabia may officially be up and running after the world soccer icon netted a spectacular four goals in a single match Thursday.
Ronaldo scored every goal in Al Nassr's 4-0 win over Al Wehda at the King Abdul Aziz Stadium in Mecca to maintain his team's position at the top of the Saudi Pro League.
Ronaldo scored in the 21st, 40th, 53rd, and 61st minutes as the attacker rekindled the awesome form from his Europe days that heralded him as one of the game's greats.
The exploits follow a statement from Al Nassr team manager earlier in the week as Luis Gustavo said Ronaldo's presence makes things "more difficult" for his teammates as opposition players are more motivated to do well against him.
The 38-year-old player's response was emphatic.
Ronaldo exploited spaces in Al Wehda's defense, proved lethal from inside the penalty area, and showed bursts of pace that belied his age.
After a cool penalty conversion in the second half, in which he dug the ball into the bottom left-hand corner of the keeper's goal, Ronaldo defied the goalkeeper again late in the game to seal a stunning win.
Watch all of Ronaldo's goals right here:
His midweek performance saw him score his 500th career goal and 61st hat trick.
Al Nassr is atop the Saudi Pro League with 37 points from 16 matches and is tied with second-place Al Shabab, albeit with a game in hand.
It returns with a home game against Al Taawoun on Friday, February 17.