Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr lose to Al Ain in first leg of ACL quarter-final

Oh, Al Ain, can we have more nights like this? This was an evening when the UAE’s most decorated club welcomed Al Nassr’s galaxy of stars from Saudi Arabia, their Hazza bin Zayed Stadium teeming and trembling, and sent them packing with a deserved defeat.

Sofiane Rahimi grabbed the game’s only goal, Khalid Essa twice somehow repelled Cristiano Ronaldo, Aymeric Laporte saw red late on, and Al Ain seized the upper hand in the Asian Champions League quarter-final.

Nassr, on their longest unbeaten run in the continent’s premier club competition at eight matches, were seen off by a display full of determination and discipline from the 2003 champions. Some devastating play, too.

With the first leg complete, if this full-blooded and forever feisty affair is anything to go by, there remains plenty left in the tie yet.

To think Al Ain did it on Monday without Kodjo Laba, their leading striker, only accentuates their victory. The Togo forward sits as the current top scorer in the 2023/24 Arabian Gulf League. In the Champions League, he has scored six goals in as many matches.

But, with Laba injured, playmaker Rahimi led the line with aplomb. The Moroccan ended a gripping encounter as its man of the match. There could have been many more from his team.

Nassr had their absences, also, namely World Cup finalist Marcelo Brozovic, former Manchester United full-back Alex Telles, and Anderson Talisca, the prolific Brazilian with five goals in his past two matches.

Despite those who had not made the trip, Luis Castro could still call upon Ronaldo, Manchester City treble-winner Laporte, Portugal international Otavio, and Sadio Mane. The latter, a late addition to Nassr’s match day squad, has won Europe’s Champions League, England’s Premier