Al Nassr vs Al Qadsiah: Ronaldo and Nacho face off, and other key battles

Thursday night throws up a huge match towards the top of the Roshn Saudi League, when Al Nassr host Al Qadsiah at Al Awwal Park.

The Matchweek 14 encounter pits against one another the division’s second- and fifth-placed sides, with the former, Al Nassr, looking to bounce back following a first defeat of the season last time out.

The 3-2 reverse at Al Ahli, coupled with Al Hilal’s 2-0 triumph at Damac, meant Cristiano Ronaldo and Co relinquished their place at the summit - a position they’d held since the very first round.

So, can they get back to winning ways? Yet challenges don’t come much more difficult, especially since Al Qadsiah are purring following the appointment of former Liverpool and Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers. What's more, Al Nassr have lost their past three games against them.

Take a look, then, at these individual head-to-heads, which should go some way to deciding the outcome.

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Cristiano Ronaldo vs Nacho

Former teammates, ex-Real Madrid captains and both considered greats at the giants of world football, the pair will once again put aside friendship to face-off in the RSL.

Ronaldo perches joint-top of the 2025-25 scoring charts, with 13 goals, while Nacho has guided Al Qadsiah to enjoying the equal-second-best defensive record in the division (12 conceded). Which Real Madrid legend will come out on top this time?

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Marcelo Brozovic vs Nahitan Nandez

The industrious Croatian makes his team tick, where Brozovic is crucial to how Al Nassr set about opponents.

Unfortunately for fans, the former Inter Milan midfielder will not face Al Qadsiah counterpart Musab Al Juwayr, the reigning RSL Young Player of the Year who has been called up to the AFC Under-23 Asian Cup taking place in the Kingdom.

Presumably, that leaves the all-action Nandez to attempt to keep the reins on Brozovic wherever he goes on the pitch - something, you’d imagine, the tenacious Uruguayan will relish. Indefatigable in midfield, he can also provide much more going forward.

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Joao Felix vs Julian Weigl

Has there been a more impressive RSL debut than Felix’s? The Al Nassr forward, signed this summer from Chelsea, began life in the top-flight with a hat-trick, added another in Matchweek 5 and, in all, resides alongside teammate Ronaldo at the top of the season’s scoring charts.

Felix’s tendency to drop deep will force him into Weigl territory. The German, signed in September from Borussia Monchengladbach, will seek to hassle and harry the prolific Portuguese and thus stymie his input.

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Abdulelah Al Amri vs Julian Quinones

With Mohamed Simakan unavailable, the task of shackling Al Qadsiah hotshot Quinones will fall on Al Amri. Not that the Al Nassr centre-back will shy away from that; his two goals against Al Ahli last time out, albeit at the other end of the pitch, shows he’s a man for the spotlight.

Rather more predictably, Quinones is in fine goalscoring form himself, his 17-second opener against Al Riyadh on Sunday taking the prolific Mexican to five goals in his past five RSL outings.

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Jorge Jesus vs Brendan Rodgers

Almost as importantly, the touchline tactical battle will go a long way to determining who departs Al Awwal Park the happier.

Jesus is a demanding and dogged manager, whose RSL pedigree helps explain why Al Nassr were this summer so eager to appoint a former Al Hilal head coach. His side boast both the best attack (37 goals) and joint-best defence (10 conceded) in the 2025-26 RSL.

In contrast, Rodgers is an RSL newbie but has already made Al Qadsiah more attacking: after an opening draw, they’ve won their past two, scoring seven goals in the process.