Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Cristiano Ronaldo were taken off the field after one hour of play in the PSG vs Riyadh 11 game at the King Fahd International Stadium on Thursday.
Paris Saint-German
bagged a 5-4 win over Saudi All-Stars in the exhibition match in Riyadh. The
action began with Messi breaking the deadlock in the opening three minutes.
Neymar lobbed a through ball over four defenders from the left-half space and
Messi ran onto it to finish in between the goalkeeper and left back.
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Ronaldo then scored the
equalizer for the hosts as he successfully converted from the penalty spot
after being fouled by PSG goalkeeper Keylor Navas in the 34th minute Navas came
out of his line to punch the ball away, but he ended up connecting with a
leaping Ronaldo that drew the spot kick. Ronaldo then drilled the attempt past
Nawas toward the right-middle corner.
Also Read | End of road for Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo? PSG beats Riyadh 11 5-4 at King Fahd Stadium
In the 53rd minute of
the second half, Mbappe tallied his second assist of the game to another center
back and Ramos compensated for his earlier mistake to give PSG the 3-2 lead.
Jang Hyon-soo equalized with a header for the Riyadh XI three minutes later.
In the 60th minute,
Mbappe entered his name onto the scorecard with a penalty after Messi’s shot
inside the box hit a defender’s arm to make it 4-3.
Ronaldo was substituted
shortly after, followed by Messi, Neymar, and Mbappe a minute later. In his
first game in Saudi Arabia, the Portugal star was given an hour and he scored a
poaching goal and a penalty.
Messi was taken off in
the 62nd minute, along with Mbappe and Neymar. Neymar came out after an assist
and missed a penalty ad Galtier made a series of changes.
Also Read | Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo share stare after Juan Bernat red card in PSG vs Riyadh 11: Watch
Ronaldo is expected to
take the field for Al Nassr when the team plays Ettifaq on Sunday in the Saudi
Pro League. Messi and company are likely to be back for Monday’s game against
Pays de Cassel in the French Cup unless manager Cristophe Galtier opts to rotate
and use youngsters.
